Mariana's Mortal Coil
by jumbochamploonrules
Summary: Mariana is a Celestrian that has been given the duties to be Angel Falls's guardian. But after tragedy strikes at the Observatory, she is going to have to learn to get by without her wings and only a few of her divine properties in order to save the Heavenly Realm and the Protectorate from certain disaster. Rated M for mature audiences. Reviews are welcome!
1. Chapter 1

**This fic is about Dragon Quest 9: Sentinels of the Starry Skies.  
It will contain violence, blood, character death, swearing, and other adult situations. Rated M for Mature.  
This fanfic will be told in the POV of Mariana, my OC.  
With this out of the way, let's begin.**

* * *

 **Chapter 1:**

It was yet another day down in the Protectorate. Which meant it was time for me and my mentor to head down to see if the residents of our assigned town needed any kind of assistance.

"Look at all of these happy faces, Mariana. After today, it'll be up to you to make sure that they stay safe from any kind of danger," my mentor, Aquila said to me with a stern smile.

"I know, Master Aquila. I'm willing to perform this duty for the good of both the humans and for the good of Yggdrasil. Only a little bit more work, and it will finally bear fruit. I can literally see it now," I smiled back at him as I fluttered my wings along with him in the air.

There are probably many wondering what I'm talking about, so I'll fill you in. Me and Aquila were both Celestrians, which were beings chosen by the Grand Master Zenus, the creator of this world, to protect the souls of the Protectorate and collect their gratitude in the form of benevolessence which was the key to giving life to the tree Yggdrasil back in our home, the Observatory. The legends say that, once Yggdrasil finally bears fruit, the Starflight Express will arrive to deliver the fruits the tree bears, the Fyggs, and transport them to the Realm of the Almighty Zenus. And once they are brought before him, then the Celestrians' duty will have been fulfilled, allowing us to finally depart to be by his side forever... sound convoluted? Trust me, if you were in my sandals, you'd understand a lot easier.

"You know that you don't have to keep calling me Master, Mariana. After today, you will have become the teacher," Aquila smiled at me, being as modest as usual.

"Aw, come on, Aquila. You've been around much longer than I have. I'm just a newbie in this-" I was about to say until I saw trouble on the horizon. On the path leading into town, I saw a young woman that I'd seen before making the same trip with her elderly grandfather. Her name was Erinn and she was the innkeeper of Angel Falls, which is what I would be chosen to protect if I passed today's final test. And as they were walking down the road going back into the town, I saw a duo of Slimes and a Cruelcumber in hiding, ready to attack the duo when they passed by. "Trouble at 2 o'clock! Let's go make some slimy salad out of these guys!" I exclaimed at Aquila, him smirking at my usual enthusiasm as we both rushed off to the monsters with our powerful wings, me immediately taking out my bronze sword and slicing at the Cruelcumber, managing to chop off his head in just one swing.

Aquila then focused his attention on the Slimes, me helping him by casting a Frizz spell at one of them while he sliced another one in the eye with his sword of choice, the Bastard Sword, which was a pretty powerful sword. Both were dead in a flash, just as Erinn and her grandfather came down the path and looked at the monster corpses with a smile. "The Celestrians protected us on our way back, gramps... thank you, Mariana and Aquila... though I can't see you, I know you helped us..." Erinn smiled as she did a small prayer, me actually smiling as her benevolessence appeared in front of us. She was the only one who actually prayed to me and Aquila on a regular basis, which I found quite admirable.

I then picked up the benevolessence and Aquila smiled at me. "Your training is complete, Mariana. Now let us return to the Observatory to let Apus Major know of your success," Aquila smiled at me. I smiled and nodded as I flapped my wings and both of us flew high into the sky and up to the Observatory, which was very high up in the sky and could only be accessed by either the Starflight Express or by Celestrians. It took a few minutes of flight, but we eventually reached the Observatory with the benevolessence in my grasp. "Okay, let us report to Apus Major," Aquila smiled as he led me through the place and towards the living quarters of Apus Major, the leader of the Celestrians. He was the one in charge of making sure we offered our benevolessence to Yggdrasil and also keeping track of the Celestrians both in the Observatory and in the Protectorate. He'd been put in charge after a certain Celestrian named Corvus disappeared after falling to the Protectorate nearly 20 years ago.

We then went up to Apus Major and saw that he was quite pleased to see us. "Ah, Mariana and Aquila. How was your final test to become a Celestrian, young Mariana?" Apus Major asked me with a smile.

"She passed with flying colors. She defended a woman and her grandfather from being attacked by a trio of monsters," Aquila said for me.

"Good show, Mariana! You are now officially the guardian of Angel Falls! Please, go and deliver your benevolessence to mighty Yggdrasil. I sense that it is nearly ready to bear fruit," Apus Major smiled at me.

"Of course, Apus Major," I smiled as I went out towards the top of the Observatory and went up to the tree of Yggdrasil, the tree just as beautiful as I had first seen it. It was so beautiful and shimmering with radiance, that I was able to see my reflection in the dew of the leaves every time. In terms of appearance, I had light blue hair that was very full and luscious, it being more long in the back than in the front and being in an up-do style. It was very cute to look at honestly. My face looked cute too, with my lips being a cute red color naturally, my eyes being medium-sized and somewhat sly in appearance with blue irises, and my body was actually very nice too. It wasn't anything too special, just C cup breasts and some good curves, but it also was doubly cute for me because I was only 4 foot 7 inches tall, making me the smallest of all the female Celestrians.

"Oh mighty, Yggdrasil... please accept this benevolessence..." I said with a prayer as I offered the benevolessence up to Yggdrasil, the shimmering lights shining nonstop as I saw something form on one of the tree limbs up above. A small bud. "Oh! I must tell this to Apus Major!" I said in astonishment as I rushed back down to his area with excitement rushing through my blood. "Apus Major! Big news!" I exclaimed in excitement when I saw him.

"What is it, Mariana? You're not normally this excitable," Apus Major said to me.

"Yggdrasil has formed a bud! It's nearing the final stages before it finally bears Fyggs!" I said with giddiness, him immediately gawking at that.

"Amazing! We must continue to give Yggdrasil benevolessence. Just a little more and the prophecy can be fulfilled. You should probably return to Angel Falls to collect more benevolessence from the townsfolk in the meantime," Apus Major said to me with a smile.

"Of course, Apus Major," I smiled as I calmed myself down and went outside and flew myself back down to Angel Falls. Now was my time to start doing my duties as the guardian of the small town in question. And when I finally touched down in the town, I immediately overheard someone talking. It was a human and he was with his friend in front of the Celestrian statue by the waterfall.

"I'm telling you, Hugo, I'm very confused about this," said the voice of Ivor, a firm non-believer in Celestrian works. He was also somewhat of a troublemaker from what Aquila told me, but that was to be expected of a teenage boy of the mortal coil.

"Isn't the guardian of Angel Falls Mariana? I mean, that's what the statue says and what Erinn believes," his buddy Hugo said, him being conflicted in terms of believing in us Celestrians and our deeds. Couldn't blame them honestly, since very few humans were able to see or hear those of the celestial realm. Only way they could see us is if they were very young (around birth to 5 years old) or if they were pure-hearted.

"No, she isn't! Yesterday, that statue said Aquill or something. But now it says Mariana. That's a completely different name than before," Ivor frowned. I smiled at their bickering until I noticed a dog look at me and point me in the direction of a small well in the distance. I saw something shiny there and smiled when I recognized it as a ring. I'd seen this ring before and knew it belonged to an elderly woman that frequented the church.

I picked it up and smiled at the doggy before petting his head, since animals were some of the few creatures that could see us Celestrians besides monsters. "Good boy," I smiled at him as I then visited the church and found the woman deep in prayer in the pews of the congregation. I simply slipped the ring in her pocket and she noticed me touching her when I did so.

"Huh?.. Did something just go into my pocket?" she asked aloud as she then searched in it and gasped when she found her ring. "M-My ring! This must be the work of Mariana! Oh thank you, kind guardian! I'm so grateful for your help," the old woman smiled as her benevolessence poured out and I collected it afterwards before hearing the priestess speak again.

"You say Mariana found your ring? Maybe she could also help Hank the farmer. He's passed out from working so hard trying to clean up all that manure by himself, poor thing," the priestess said with a sigh and a prayer.

"Of course. I can help him," I smiled, knowing full well that just my speaking could be heard by her, since she was blessed by the Almighty to be able to hear our voices.

"She has spoken to me! Oh, I thank you, Almighty Zenus..." the priestess said with joy. There was no benevolessence though, so she must've been just happy, but not grateful. Considering Aquila frequented the church here to listen to their sermons at times when there was no issues, I could understand.

I then went towards the farm in question and saw that there was still a lot of manure in the pen and that the farmer was asleep and resting on the hay. "Poor fella. I'll help you out... even though this stuff is gross," I smiled as I rolled up my sleeves and grabbed the dung with the pitchfork and put all of it in the wagon that he had laid out to collect it in. My ruckus managed to wake the sleeping farmer and he actually was awake to witness me put the last of the dung into the wagon, which I could tell shocked him, since he only saw the dung floating on its own.

"M-Mariana! You've helped me to clean up the barn! Thank you so much! I promise I'll work harder at this! In fact, I'll get another cow to celebrate this occasion!" the farmer said happily as I saw tears come out of his eyes as well as benevolessence being formed afterwards. I smiled and picked it up after he went to go and take the wagon out to dispose of the trash. I then went outside and smiled when I saw it was dusk. And that could only mean one thing.

"When darkness falls upon the protectorate and the souls of the living are all asleep, the souls of the deceased that have lost their way shall appear. Only by helping them depart to the afterlife will you get the most powerful form of benevolessence imaginable. The gratitude of the passed," I smiled as I recited the old rhyme that I was taught from Apus Major himself. I looked around and happened to see a soul that looked quite saddened standing by the bridge towards Erinn's house. I approached him and smiled.

"Excuse me, sir. How are you?" I smiled at him, immediately grabbing his attention as he turned to face me, the shock on his face priceless.

"O-Oh my! Someone is finally talking to me?... Wait... are those angel wings on you?... Then that means I've gone and kicked the bucket, didn't I?" the man asked with a bit of surprise in his voice.

"Sadly, yes. I'm Mariana, guardian of Angel Falls starting today," I smiled at him.

"I thank you, Mariana... I was lost, trying to speak to everyone but none of them understanding me. And now, I can be at peace... thank you, from the bottom of my heart," the man smiled as his spirit departed for the afterlife, leaving behind a very powerful piece of benevolessence. "I have a feeling this will be enough for Yggdrasil to finally bloom," I smiled as I then departed towards the Observatory and immediately went to speak with Apus Major.

"Apus Major? I have received 2 pieces of benevolessence from the living and one from a deceased soul. I think that this may be enough for Yggdrasil to finally bear its fruit," I smiled at him when I presented my benevolessence.

"You couldn't be anymore right, Mariana. Other Celestrians have come and offered their benevolessence as well, Yggdrasil now having 7 total buds on her mighty branches. Come with me, you too Aquila! We must bear witness to the bearing of fruit!" Apus Major said with happiness as we went up towards the giant tree in question.

But little did I know that something was about to go very wrong very quickly.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

After I gave the benevolessence to Yggdrasil, the moment finally happened that we had been waiting for. Yggdrasil finally bore the legendary Fyggs! And they were absolutely gorgeous! They had the shape of a regular fig from the mortal realm, but they had the color and aura that screamed divine power! "Behold! Yggdrasil finally bears fruit!" Apus Major exclaimed with a smile as I then heard a loud whistle from a train. It was the Starflight Express. "The Starflight Express is coming! We can finally be at the Master's side!" Apus Major exclaimed in joy... but then something shocking and unexpected happened.

Out of bloody nowhere, a giant pillar of dark purple light burst forth from the Protectorate and shot right through the middle of the Starflight Express, sending it plummeting straight down to the Protectorate! Not only that, but there were even more pillars of light that actually did damage to the Observatory as well as did something that I knew was not according to the prophecy. The Fyggs were swept away by the winds that were kicked up by the sudden explosions of darkened light and were also swept towards the Protectorate! And then, Apus Major spoke again.

"Have we all been deceived?" he asked aloud as another pillar of light happened extremely close to me, the result being something I didn't expect. I was swept off of the platform from the sudden gust of wind and it also made me get extremely drained due to me getting blasted by another pillar of light on the way down! I was so exhausted that I couldn't let out my wings to let myself fall easier. And then, I felt something happen to my back. I felt my feathers flying off of my wings!

"OH NO! PLEASE NO! NOT MY WINGS!" I exclaimed in shock and fear before I plummeted into a large flume of water, which I didn't expect at all, but me being able to swim after getting dunked completely. The flow of the river was too strong, however, as I felt it dragging me towards a waterfall in the distance. Before I went over the edge, I tried to fly with my wings, but I quickly felt behind my back and gasped. My wings were no longer there. Just two small, naked pieces of flesh were all that remained. I passed out soon after, just as I went over the edge of the waterfall. Wherever I was, I knew it would take a miracle for me to get back home to the Observatory.

* * *

"Hey. Are you okay?" I heard a kind voice ask me as I lazily opened my eyes from my slumber, me surprised to see that it was Erinn. "You're a wonder, you know that? Not every day that someone is silly enough to jump off the waterfall," Erinn said with a smile as I gasped at how she was able to see me.

"Y-You can... see me?" I asked her with weariness in my voice as I tried to get up, but saw that I was aching a bit from the long drop from the sky.

"Of course I can see you, silly... though I must admit, I don't recognize your clothes... never saw clothes like yours before... who are you?" Erinn asked me with a smile. I smirked lightly and turned myself over so she could see my back, which Erinn immediately got curious about.

"Do you see those small things on my back?... the things that look like featherless chicken wings?" I smiled, making Erinn gasp audibly.

"Y-You mean... you're a Celestrian?!" she gawked at me. I smirked at her afterwards and nodded.

"You're looking at the one that you thanked after she and her friend Aquila handled those Slimes and Cruelcumber for you," I smiled at her. It was all I could do to erase the pains of guilt I was feeling at being unable to use my wings ever again.

"Mariana?... Oh my goodness... what happened to you? Why did you lose your wings?" she asked in shock.

"Something nasty happened in the Observatory... giant pillars of light did damage to my home and blew me off the place. But before I could fix myself before falling some more, I got hit by one of those blasts of light, it knocking the wind out of me so much that I couldn't flap my wings for the life of me... after that, I fell all the way down here, to the Protectorate... my wings burned off on my way down and I passed out just before the river carried me off the waterfall... didn't expect that it'd be you to find me, however... I guess now's the time I should be grateful to you," I smiled at her afterwards, making Erinn a bit bashful as her cheeks flushed red.

"I never thought I'd be able to meet you in person, Mariana... what you describe sounds absolutely terrifying too... I promise I will do anything to help you recover," Erinn smiled at me.

"Celestrians recover from injuries rather quickly... can't say the same for my wings, however, but I can move around after a day's worth of rest," I smiled.

"Okay, that's good to hear. Would you like some tea? Maybe some breakfast?" Erinn smiled at me.

"Thanks, I'd appreciate that," I smiled at her honestly. I guess that I'd need to get used to being on mortal grounds from now on. But more than that, after I was done recovering, I'd need to find out a way to get back to the Observatory. And that meant either waiting for the other Celestrians to come rescue me or for me to try and find the Starflight Express.

I stayed with Erinn and her grandfather for the rest of the day, not getting out of bed until after breakfast the next morning, me smiling at how I could move my body without pain once again and deciding to go for a small stroll around the town. And then I went to the Celestrian statue and knelt down to pray, hoping someone may hear me. "Apus Major... Aquila... Almighty Zenus... I ask you, please be safe... and please, come find me... I can't return on my own," I sighed in prayer, hoping for an answer. Nothing. Nothing at all.

"Peh, look at this girl. Who are you anyways?" I heard the voice of Ivor ask from behind me. I sighed and turned around, looking at him with a small frown.

"I'm sure that if you looked at my back just now, you'd see what remains of what I used to be," I frowned at him as I turned around again, showing him the skin that remained of my wings.

"What are those things? They look like chicken wings before they're cooked, but extremely tiny," I heard Hugo say from behind me.

"She was probably born with an abnormality in her spine," Ivor said, his unbeliever status shining once again.

"Nothing is abnormal about a Celestrian's wings," I said to him with a small smile, Ivor frowning at that.

"You're saying that you're a Celestrian? Then where's your halo? And where's your wing feathers, if you claim those are your wings?" Ivor asked me.

"The halos are only able to be seen when you're a spirit or you are able to see the spirit world. And my feathers burned off of me after I fell from the Observatory. Some dark lights attacked it and I fell off the observatory from the blast of one of them. And according to what I've heard from the villagers, the Observatory wasn't the only thing to be attacked. Around the same time, a huge earthquake happened to this world, correct?" I asked, making Ivor think a bit at what I just said.

"So what's your name, anyways?" Hugo asked.

"My name is Mariana. I'm the guardian of Angel Falls as of two days ago. I got the roll after training under Master Aquila for 3 years," I explained to them.

"Is that the reason that the statue got the name changed all of a sudden? Are you joshing me?" Ivor asked. I sighed and nodded my head.

"And I must say, Ivor, that your belief in the Celestrians is highly misguided," I frowned at him, making him gasp at that.

"You sound just like Erinn!" he groaned at me.

"Maybe because she is an avid believer in the good we Celestrians do. I just helped her from being attacked by monsters on her way home as my final test two days ago, and she offered her thanks to me afterwards. Her belief is strong... but enough about that. Do you happen to know of anything we could do to get to the next town? Or anything that may have happened during the earthquake?" I asked them, Ivor looking a bit perplexed by how quickly I changed the subject.

"Actually, the way to the next door kingdom, Stornway, is actually blocked off by some debris that fell down from the earthquake. I was hoping to venture over there to see if I could help get the debris out of the way, as we need trade with Stornway for our town to survive... tell ya what. You say you're a Celestrian? Then do a good deed and join me in trying to get that debris moved!" Ivor smiled at me. I smirked at his offer.

"Your offer is accepted. When shall we head out?" I asked with a smile.

"We can head out right now, if you want!... Hugo! You stay here to defend the town. Make sure my pops doesn't know where I'm at," Ivor said to his lackey.

"Aye aye, Ivor," Hugo smiled at him as he stood by the front gate to Angel Falls.

"Now let's go. Follow my lead, Marianne," he said to me, which made me groan at him already forgetting my name.

"Mariana," I frowned at him.

* * *

We then proceeded to the east from Angel Falls and we saw that the area had tons of monsters that had spouted out, those being Cruelcumbers, Teeny Sanguini, Batterflies, Bodkin Archers, Sacksquatches, and Slimes. I had encountered all of these enemies before in my training to be the guardian of Angel Falls and even some monsters from Stornway as well. We then made our way to the area that led to the safe place that was an area that was fashioned out of a canyon. But as we entered it, I saw something in front of me that made me gasp and stop in place, causing Ivor to look at me in confusion.

"What's the matter? It's just a fallen tree," Ivor said to me. I frowned at him as I knew exactly what it was. It was the train engine to the Starflight Express!

"You can't see it, can you? Probably because you're a mortal... maybe I can still do something," I said as I touched his arm and he then gasped as he saw it just as I did.

"I-I see it... a train? What would a train be doing here?" Ivor asked. "It's not just any train. It's the Starflight Express, the most divine train in the world... but where could the conductor be? I see none at all... let's continue on for now," I said to him as I let go of him and he gasped again as it suddenly disappeared from his vision.

"You are a Celestrian... oh my goddess..." he gawked at that as we finally reached the obstruction in question. It was a giant boulder that was blocking the way. "Oh man! I thought that it'd be easier to clear than this! There's no way that we'd be able to remove this ourselves," Ivor complained at the debris, us hearing a voice on the other side of the rubble.

"Hey! Are you lot from Angel Falls?!" I heard the voice say on the other side of the giant rock.

"Yes, we are! Are you from Stornway?" Ivor exclaimed back.

"Indeed we are! Don't worry about this rubble. We've been tasked by King Schott to remove it! It shall be taken care of within a few days, so just stay safe until it's removed," the soldier on the other side said. "Understood!" I exclaimed back as Ivor and I then proceeded back to Angel Falls. We had essentially found the Starflight Express and found out that the rubble would be removed in 3 days. We accomplished one thing and were unable to accomplish the other.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

Upon us returning to Angel Falls, we told the mayor about what we had found out, leaving out the part about the Starflight Express on purpose. According to Ivor, his father was even more of a nonbeliever than he was. "Ivor! You've been told not to go out of the town at all!" the mayor immediately scolded him after we had explained ourselves.

"He wasn't in any kind of danger, sir. I'm a great sword user and I took care of any monsters that got in our way. No harm came to him at all," I said to the mayor, remembering his name to be Litlun.

"So, you're that strange woman that fell from the waterfall yesterday, right? How are you already up and about? You had some pretty nasty wounds," Litlun asked me.

"I'm a notoriously fast healer. It's something that comes custom where I come from," I said with a smile, hoping he'd believe that.

"Hmm.. alright. So how long did the soldiers say it would take to remove the rubble?" the mayor asked.

"They said the rubble would be removed within 3 days, more or less," I said with a smile.

"Okay. I suggest you go back to your Erinn friend. She's been worried about you," the mayor said. I smiled and excused myself from the mayor's house as I then literally bumped into Erinn, both of us falling on the ground afterwards.

"Oops! Sorry," I said as I helped her off the ground, Erinn gasping at something after I touched her. "What is it?" I asked as I looked where she did and saw something I didn't understand. It looked to be a small, pink light. And it was following me. "Hmm... who are you?" I asked while holding onto Erinn, wondering what that ball of light is.

"Oi! I should be flapping asking you that question, missy! How're you able to see me? Moreover, how come anyone you come into contact with can see divine creatures?" the voice asked... in a cockney accent. She sounded quite cute with that accent honestly.

"I'm Mariana, a Celestrian that lost her wings. And who are you? Moreover, what are you? The tiny ball of light tells me something cute, but your voice sounds like a bad girl," I said, that making the light hit me across the head a few times before I grabbed the light with two fingers, that prompting the being to show her true self, which was just as tall as me. As in, not very tall.

"Don't ya dare touch my delicate, dainty frame ever again!" she groaned at me, Erinn looking at Stella with giant eyes of intrigue.

"A fairy?... What is your name?" Erinn asked with amazement.

"Name's Stella, the head stewardess of the Starflight Express," Stella smiled, making Erinn gasp at that.

"Stella? As in, sister of the goddess? Once a being called Stellestria?" Erinn asked, me confused by her wording and Stella pinching Erinn's lips shut after that.

"Shush! I don't like being reminded of that fact. I like my sis, I do, but I don't like remembering what I used to be... ugh..." Stella groaned.

"Erinn? Was there a reason you came over to the mayor's house?" I asked her.

"Actually, I wanted to ask if, while you and Ivor were out, if you happened to spot my friend, Patty," Erinn said.

"Patty? You mean that one girl from Stornway? I remember protecting her from monsters the last time she came through here a month ago," I said.

"Yeah, she said she was coming to visit me, but then the earthquake happened. I don't know where she is... oh, I just hope she didn't decide to venture through the Hexagon," Erinn said, me wondering if Patty would do something like that.

"Just in case, I should probably go to see if anyone did go to the Hexagon. After all, it's full of monsters as well as having poisonous water in some areas. I should see if anyone wanted to go through there... want to come with, Stella?" I asked the fairy.

"Very well, wingless lady. You better not be pulling my flapping wings by saying you're a Celestrian. If I find out you're telling me porkies, I'm gonna kick your ass," Stella smiled at me.

"At what size? Your current size or tiny ball of light size?" I smirked at her.

"Shut it," Stella frowned as I let go of Erinn and she smiled at how Stella wasn't able to be seen by her anymore. "That Ivor fella was surprised as well when he saw the divine realm for the first time," Stella smirked at her as I proceeded out towards the Hexagon, which, from my past experiences, was to the southeast.

Once I got to it, I saw the purple water and then entered the Hexagon itself, seeing that the area in front of me had a locked door. "Hmm..." I said as I looked around for a switch to open the door, a spirit actually appearing in front of us that I didn't recognize. It looked to be a very old man. "Who are you?" I asked him in confusion. He didn't answer me. Instead, he walked to the back of the statue and I followed him.

"The switch is here," the old man said before he disappeared, me wondering who it was.

"He's helping you, I guess," Stella said as I saw that the back of the statue had a switch on it. I immediately flipped it and saw that it opened the door. "Okay, time to go deeper into the Hexagon," Stella smiled as we both moved forward and I saw that me flipping the switch actually got the monsters' attention. I had to deal with a lot of monsters that I hadn't dealt with at all, including the Firespirits, regular Spirits, and some Winksters. All of them had spells of some sort and I had to dodge them to prevent from being singed by the spells, which was quite easy as they were basic Frizz spells.

I ended up going down two floors and then going through a door to the north and hearing a small growling when I got into this particular room. It didn't sound happy, but then I heard another voice. "D-Did I just hear a door?! Help! Help me!" I heard a woman's voice exclaim. I immediately rushed into the room she was in and I immediately recognized her. It was a blue haired woman with fancy attire of orange with hints of purple to it. She looked sexy too with a size D breast cup and having good curves... shame you couldn't see them due to the large skirt she had.

She also looked to have her legs trapped underneath some rubble, which I knew would take some work to remove. "Don't worry, I'm here to help. Erinn sent me," I said to her as I tried to get the debris off her body, but she stopped me.

"You need to defeat the guardian first. Because of him is why I got trapped under this debris," Patty said as I heard the growl again and then I heard some stomping as well as felt the ground move slightly. "He's coming back! Please protect me from him!" Patty exclaimed, me looking at Stella with seriousness.

"Stella, you help her get freed. I'll handle the guardian," I said to her.

"Are you flapping joking? I hate manual labor!" Stella complained.

"Shut up and I'll owe you whatever you want," I frowned at her.

Stella groaned as she then got a bright idea. "Let me do your nails when we get some downtime. That's what your debt shall be," Stella smirked, me being a bit confused at that, but then my attention got drawn to in front of me where I saw the guardian appear before me. It was a guardian that I had actually battled before with Aquila's help.

"Fine, deal, now help her," I groaned at Stella, Patty looking quite confused at my words, but then she looked at my back and saw what remained of my wings. I then stared down the Hexagoon and drew my sword, smirking at the big boy. "Hexagoon, we meet again. Didn't learn your lesson the last time I battered you, huh? Come at me!" I exclaimed at the giant monster, it roaring as it then rushed me and tried to get me with his horns, but I responded by stabbing him directly into his left eye, making the Hexagoon roar loudly as I pulled out the eye and smirked at how I had damaged him pretty good.

"You want some more, big boy? I'm available," I smiled at him with some sass, the Hexagoon roaring and charging me again, me dodging his attack and me plunging the sword into the beast's side, right in the torso. I smiled at how I had managed to get his heart, the monster gurgling out blood before finally falling... and me getting some blood on my Celestrian robes.

"You're... You're a Celestrian, aren't you?" Patty asked me when Stella had finally gotten all the debris off of Patty... or at least enough to the point she could get out on her own.

"Yes, I am. And if you're wondering who I was arguing with, it's my friend, Stella. She's a fairy," I smiled at her.

"I see... so what was the deal that you agreed on?" Patty asked.

"I'll tell you on the way to Angel Falls. My guess is that you want to visit Erinn, right?" I asked her.

"Yes, but... how did you know?" she asked me.

"Remember a month ago? How no monsters went after you? That was because I dealt with any monsters that tried to attack you," I smiled at her.

"So... how come I can see you now and I couldn't see you then?" Patty asked.

"Because back then, I had my wings. During the last earthquake, the Observatory also got damaged, the result being me falling from there and my wings burning up on my way through the atmosphere. Because I lost all the feathers, I'm now just as mortal as you are. The only difference is that I can still see and communicate to things of the divine world, such as Stella and spirits of dead people that have lost their way," I said to her.

"Wow, seems that a lot of things have happened since the earthquake... not only did the path to Angel Falls get blocked, not only have monsters suddenly increased their numbers, but also the heavenly realm actually got damaged? That's a lot to take in," Patty said.

"Yeah, it is," I said as I took her hand as well as grabbed onto Stella, Patty gasping when she saw Stella. "Easy, I'm going to warp us out of here with Evac," I smiled as I cast the spell and all of us got out of the Hexagon and into the poisoned water area. "Okay, let's head back to Angel Falls. Maybe we can get there before nightfall and we can talk to Erinn," I smiled at Patty as Stella looked at my hand with a smile.

"Your nails will need to have some work. Just looking at them and I can tell that all you do is clip them. You need to be more delicate with your nails, hon," Stella smiled at me, making Patty smirk slyly.

"Wait, I can only guess the debt. You want to give her a manicure, don't you?" Patty smiled.

"Well, duh! It's my dream job! I want to be a nail artist... or whatever people in the Protectorate call it," Stella smiled.

"We call them nail technicians and they tend to work at spas," Patty smiled as she showed off her nails, them looking much better than mine but still not as dainty as Stella's. They did have polish on them, however, which made Stella smile at her.

"Blue nail polish, ey? Very clever," Stella smiled at that, me then taking my arm off of Patty and her being unable to see Stella anymore.

"I guess I can only see the divine realm when you touch me?" Patty asked. I nodded my head as we appeared in Angel Falls and we went to the Inn that Erinn worked at and Patty smiled at her friend.

"Erinn? Darling, how are ya?" Patty smiled at Erinn.

"Patty! I can't believe you're here!... You went through the Hexagon, didn't you? You know that it's unstable!" Erinn said with a frown.

"Well, I learned that the hard way. My legs were trapped under debris caused by the guardian, which your divine friend here called the Hexagoon," Patty smirked, Erinn smiling at me.

"Thank you for saving her, Mariana," Erinn smiled at me. And honestly, when she said that, I expected a small blue bit of benevolessence to appear in front of me... but my shock was plain as day when none formed.

"Huh?" I asked, wondering where the stuff was.

"Anyways, why are you here, Patty? There has to be some reason that you had to see me, and it must be important if you risked your hide in the Hexagon," Erinn smiled at Patty.

"Always on the nose as always, Erinn. You're right. Our inn back in Stornway is actually losing business. We need some assistance in getting it back on track. And what better than the granddaughter of the best innkeeper in the entire world? Girl, your gramps was the best innkeeper in the world and I know you've got it in your blood," Patty smiled at Erinn.

"What? Me, run an inn like that? I-I don't know if I can... and you're saying my grandfather Edwinn was the best innkeeper in the world?" Erinn asked.

"Best in the business. He defeated all of his competition and even won the world's first Inny award!" Patty smiled at Erinn.

That only seemed to make Erinn mad. "My grandfather would never be that mean! I-I need to go back home," Erinn said as she rushed past me and Patty looked off with a small smirk.

"She's always been like this. She hates it when anyone talks about her family and she finds it offensive... if only you had some kind of proof that Edwinn was the best innkeeper in the world... if only we had a Celestrian to help us," Patty smirked at me while batting her eyelashes.

"You're playing a dangerous game, Patty. You can't mock the power of the Celestrians with flirty eyelashes... but Erinn is my friend, so I guess I can help her out..." I said at that as I was about to head out the door, but then I felt something touch me from behind. It was a touch that I knew I'd felt before during my training. The touch of a spirit. It was incredibly cold and it had a small feeling of air to it.

I turned around and I saw the same spirit that was at the Hexagon that helped me down the dungeon. "Who are you?" I asked the old guy.

"I am Edwinn, Erinn's grandfather... if you want to help my granddaughter learn about my past and why she came here in the first place, I buried something very important in a patch of grass by the hill behind the waterfall. It's the award that I had earned during the height of my career. The Inny is the key," he explained to me.

"Understood... Patty, you stay here. Stella, come with. We're going to hunt after a trophy," I smiled. Me and my fairy partner then went to the area specified by Edwinn and saw a patch of dirt by the waterfall that looked to have something underneath it. I then started digging with my shield being the shovel. And after a bit of digging, we eventually came upon a box. A box that was wooden and had a latch on it, but not a lock. I then opened the box and saw the Inny. It looked incredibly impressive in terms of quality and detail, me then putting it back in the box afterwards.

I then went to Erinn's house and found her upstairs in her room, her sitting on her desk chair. "Hey? Erinn? I have something that you may want to see," I said to her, getting her attention as she turned around and she saw the box I had.

"What? A present?" Erinn asked.

"No, not a present. It's something that your grandfather just led me to," I said to her. The moment I said that, Erinn gasped and immediately opened the box with no hesitation, gasping when she saw the trophy.

"I-It's the Inny... Patty wasn't lying... but... what does this mean?" Erinn asked as her father then walked up the stairs and smiled at her.

"I feel I can explain, Erinn," he said, getting her attention. "You see, your grandfather was a very good businessman and he won that award after the height of his career, right about the time that you were in your mother's womb. But when you were just a baby, you became ill out of nowhere and your grandfather, knowing that the waters of Angel Falls were blessed with a natural healing factor to them, he brought our family here to live out the rest of his life. He gave up his business to save your life."

Erinn smiled as she had big eyes at the story. "I always wondered why grandpa came here to this small town... now I know... he did it for me... okay. I'll do it! I'll become the innkeeper of Stornway's inn! Once the rubble is cleared, Patty and I will depart for Stornway!" Erinn said with grit in her voice at the last part.

"Atta girl! You're off to a kingdom-quality inn! Time to move up in the world," I smiled at her.

"That honestly sounds like something Stella would say," Erinn smirked.

"Oi! Tell her if she says that again, I'm gonna bitch slap her across the face!" Stella fumed.

"Easy, Stella. You need to calm down enough so you don't take your anger out on my nails," I smiled at her as I then saw Erinn's grandfather and I held onto Erinn's arm. "Turn to the door," I smiled at her, Erinn gasping and busting out into tears when she saw her grandfather.

"G-Grandpa!" Erinn gasped when she saw him.

"Yes... it is me, Erinn... I'm glad that you finally know my past... make me proud," Edwinn said as he started to glow slightly.

"I guess it's time, isn't it? For you to pass on?... I love you, grandpa..." Erinn smiled at him with tears in her eyes.

"And I love you, Erinn... remember that business and family are the most important things... but remember family comes first... farewell," Edwinn smiled before disappearing into the afterlife... but once again, I was shocked at how there was no benevolessence.

"Okay, what the heck is going on?" I asked as I looked at Stella. "Stella? Is there any benevolessence there?" I asked her.

"Yeah, there's some benevolessence. Why aren't you picking it up?" Stella asked me.

"Because... for some reason, I can't see it..." I gawked.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

After Stella did my nails (making them look pretty sweet in the process) and after three days, we eventually got news that the rubble was cleared from the pass, which meant it was finally the day for us to leave for Stornway. And Erinn and Patty were preparing to leave. "Okay, I'm off," Erinn said before she looked at Ivor, who was looking at me the whole time. "Hey! Ivor?" Erinn smiled at him.

"What is it?" he asked her.

"While I'm working at Stornway's inn, you and my dad are in charge of the inn here, okay?" Erinn smiled at him.

"Heh. Very well. I'll do my best to give you a run for your money, Erinn," Ivor smirked at her with seriousness in his voice.

"I wouldn't have it any other way. Now I say we should go now," Erinn smiled as I went with her and Patty, Stella following in her ball of light form, her being perched atop my head and being confused about the fact that I couldn't see benevolessence but I could see everything else in the divine realm.

We followed after Erinn and Patty the whole way to the pass, me and Stella stopping at the Starflight Express before we continued after them. Stella opened up the door and we ventured inside, us seeing that it was powered down after it got hit by the beam of dark light. "Dammit, this thing is low on juice... I can only assume that the only way to get this thing off the ground is if we get much more benevolessence. The Almighty is sure to help us out if we get enough," Stella smiled.

"Well, then I say we head off to Stornway and see if anyone there needs help. Also, if we do find benevolessence, you're in charge of lugging it around with us. Okay?" I asked Stella.

"Very well. Besides, if you can't see the benevolessence, then you need me by your side," Stella smirked.

"Indeed. Now why don't we go off to Stornway? I say we also go try to see how Erinn is doing," I smiled as we were about to leave... but then we gasped at how the door opened to reveal three different people emerge into the Starflight Express. And the weird part was that they actually looked to be able to see the interior of the train itself!

"Um... excuse me, ladies. Does this train belong to you?" the male of the group asked. He had a bald head with yellow eyes, wore robes that looked to belong to a monk, and having a wand on him.

"Um... it belongs to me... how are you able to see me and the train anyways? Are you all of the divine realm?" Stella asked them.

"No, we're not... we just happened to find some strange white feathers and, after we ingested them in a brew, we were suddenly able to see stuff that we didn't think we'd be able to before," said one of the girls, her having her hair in a ponytail of brown and looking to have a very nice face in terms of complexion. She also happened to have freckles on her cheeks, which made her even more adorable. The only thing that wasn't adorable about her, however? The fact that she was dressed like a knight in shining armor. Obvious paladin.

"White... feathers? YOU ATE MY WING FEATHERS?!" I exclaimed at them in shock and disgust, making them gasp at that.

"Your wing feathers? What are you... wait a minute... oh no... w-we didn't eat the wings of a Celestrian, did we? Oh goddess..." said the final girl, her looking shocked and very afraid, but me also noting that she was the youngest of all of them, at least 12 years old. And she also had some magic beads on her as well as a wearing a very cute tutu on her of multiple different colors and holding a whip by her side.

I noticed that she looked very shy and scared, so I calmed down and sighed. "It's okay... they fell off of me and you found them fair in square. Tell me, who are you guys and what are you doing?" I asked them.

The guy with the bald head smiled and went first. "My name is Carl and I'm a Sage. I'm the eldest of these two and I'm their cousin," he smiled.

Then the girl with the paladin look to her went up. "My name is Harley. I'm a Class 4 Paladin and hoping to become a Class 1 Paladin," she smiled as she held her shield with a smile.

Then the shy 12 year old came forward. "A-And I'm Ina... I-I'm a Luminary in training... I love dancing... but I'm trying to work over m-my shyness," she smiled with a stutter and a small voice, which I smiled at.

"My name is Mariana. I'm trying to return to the Observatory because I fell from there and lost my wings. The only way for me to head back is by this train, the Starflight Express. But it's out of juice because it got damaged from some kind of dark lights that assaulted the Observatory. And the juice in question is benevolessence, which it is the duty of a Celestrian to collect. It's the concentrated form of gratitude produced by the humans of this world," I explained to them.

"So we need to find benevolessence, do we? Well let's go find some! I heard the king of Stornway is looking for some help with some kind of issue. We were about to head over there before we got sidetracked by this magic train," Carl smiled.

"Understood. Let's go off to the kingdom of Stornway!" I smiled as we went out of the train and proceeded on our way to Stornway... but not before I saw someone appear before us that I didn't recognize.

"Wha?" I asked, seeing that it was a spirit and that she looked incredibly distraught. Especially with the cloak covering most of her body. "A spirit?" I gawked, getting her attention.

"Y-You can... you can see me?" she asked. I nodded my head at her, as did my new allies. She then looked around and sighed. "Please... save him... save my love..." she said before she left, her spirit disappearing. She had just warped away.

"Who was that?" Harley asked.

"I have no clue... but she seemed to be pretty surprised that we could see her... but she didn't mention who her love is, so how are we supposed to know who to look for?" Stella asked.

"We'll dwell on it later. Right now, Stornway," I said.

We then proceeded to the northwest and then towards the kingdom of Stornway itself, us actually coming across a bunch of different monsters in the process, including Winksters, Hammerhoods, She-Slimes, and Funghouls. None of them lasted long against our abilities, however, and we soon came to the kingdom of Stornway itself, us seeing Erinn and Patty just arriving and entering the inn itself.

"This should be good for a laugh. Let's go see how our little miss Inny girl is doing," Stella smirked as she flew over to the door and we had to follow after her. We then opened the door to see that Erinn had presented the Inny and that an older woman, most likely related to Patty, was in shock by it.

"I-Is that... the Inny?" she asked.

"Won by Edwinn himself. The first Inny in existence. And little Erinn here has his inn-running blood. Now do you get it?" Patty smirked as I smiled at what happened next. The inn staff all got on their knees and bowed, Erinn looking bashful at that.

"Oh, that's alright. Y-You don't need to scrape the floor and kiss my feet... come on, you're embarrassing me," Erinn said as I smirked at her and she noticed me.

"Oh! Mariana! Who are your friends?" Erinn smirked.

"I found them on the way over here. We're teaming up for an adventure. This is Carl the Sage, Harley the Paladin, and Ina, a Luminary in training... and they happened to have some of my feathers in a stew, so they're able to see Stella all on their own," I smirked at her, saying the last bit by whispering into her ear.

"Really? How odd... I'm going to do my best at this inn. Oh, by the way, this inn apparently has a bank in it. You can store your money here in case you need to save them for a rainy day. Neat, right?" Erinn smiled.

"I'd say so," Harley smiled. "Now that we've seen you get worshiped by these guys, I say it's time we go see the king about this issue he needs resolved." Erinn immediately blushed at that once again and I smiled at her.

"Don't worry, she's just trying to make you blush," Ina smiled at her as we then went out of the inn and proceeded towards the castle, where we happened to see a notice on the bulletin board.

"Hmm... it says, 'The King is looking for brave soldiers to defeat the Wight Knight. Please see King Schott for further details'... Wight Knight? Never heard of that before. But it sounds like danger," Carl said.

"Indeed. And danger is what an adventurer lives for. Let's go see what the details are," I smirked as we proceeded to the front entrance to the castle and were stopped by some guards.

"Halt! Who goes there?" the one guard asked.

"We were hoping to speak with the king about getting hired for the Wight Knight job. We saw the bulletin board," I explained.

"Oh? Brave souls wishing to defeat the Wight Knight? Go on in!" the soldier smirked, us going into the castle and smiling at the interior looking quite fancy. We proceeded up some stairs and saw the king sitting on his throne next to a younger woman and a woman around his age. Obvious princess and queen.

"Excuse me? King Schott? We were wondering if we may have the honor of going after the Wight Knight," I said, hoping I was being respectable enough in front of him. I didn't have much experience with patriarchs after all.

"You wish to rid us of the Wight Knight issue? You're all very brave. That guy attacked my soldiers and wants to kidnap my daughter Simona! You must defeat him before he can try to steal Simona again," the king said with worry.

"Father, do you really think violence is the answer? Maybe the Wight Knight is just confused," Simona said to him, me immediately seeing some tension between them.

"He tried to kidnap you, Simona! I can't lose you to someone as terrifying as him!" the king said with concern.

"So where can we find this Wight Knight?" I asked.

"You can find him at Loch Storn. It's to the north and at a peninsula to the east," King Schott said.

"Understood. We shall depart immediately," I said to him.

"Oh, before you go, I should tell you of something," the king said, me immediately stopping in my tracks. "The Wight Knight is coated in armor, so I suggest getting an upgrade to your weapon of choice. And remember that if you defeat the Wight Knight, your rewards will be plentiful," the king said.

"Thanks for the heads-up, my king," I smiled at him as we then proceeded out of the castle and I wondered where I could get some weapon upgrades... and armor upgrades.

"I think you should go to the local armories to get some weapons for our adventures. I highly recommend the swords," Harley smiled at me.

"Of course you'd recommend the sword. You're a paladin," Carl smirked at her as he punched her shoulder playfully. That made me laugh as I then proceeded to the place that would have these items.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

After I got an upgrade to my arsenal by changing into a female chain mail with some iron boots, I also got an upgrade to my weapon in the form of a neat rapier, which I smiled at how useful I knew it would be. "This is gonna be fun," I smirked at this new sword as we then proceeded out of town and towards the north, which I remembered that going further than Loch Storn would lead to the town of Zere. On our way to Loch Storn, we encountered some more unpleasant monsters in the form of Bubble Slimes that could poison us if we weren't careful, Wooper Troopers that had swords and shields of their own, Meowgicians (which were cat sorcerers), and even some Ragged Reapers, scarecrows that were alive through black magic.

We finally arrived at Loch Storn and saw that there was no Wight Knight to mention of. "Hello? Anyone here? Looking for a Wight Knight? Huh, guess he's not here. Maybe he's sleeping," Stella said aloud, but only then did we hear the sound of a horse whinnying and we looked up to the top of the cliff. And up at the top? A knight in black armor with his face covered and him atop a horse that was also coated in armor, the horse actually having red, piercing eyes. The knight then had the horse jump down to our level and he breathed heavily when he saw us.

"You are not my beloved Mona. Who are you?" the Wight Knight asked us, Ina immediately getting confused at his word usage.

"Wait... Mona? But wasn't the princess's name Simona? That's... not right," Ina said, her voice still as shy as ever.

"Wait... what are you saying?" the knight asked in confusion.

"You say that you're after a person called Mona? The princess of Stornway is called Simona... speaking of which, where did you come from? I've never heard of a Wight Knight before and I've been a paladin for 10 years," Harley asked him.

"I was certain that was Mona... she has the same necklace as I remembered my Mona to have... I don't know what's going on, but I guess I must have made a mistake... please, I ask that you try to tell them that I had no intention of causing any trouble... but I'd also like to ask if you can assist me in trying to find my beloved Mona and Brigadoom," the Wight Knight requested of us, Carl gasping when he heard that term.

"Wait... Brigadoom? Isn't that place abandoned? I remember reading that it was once a great kingdom before a tragedy struck there..." Carl said, the Wight Knight gasping at that.

"Brigadoom? Something's happened there?!" he asked in shock, me immediately holding my hands up and sighing at him.

"Listen, Wight Knight. We're going to go to Stornway and tell them of your news. We ask that you wait here in Loch Storn until we return. Then we'll try and find out where Brigadoom is so we can go there together," I said to him, the Wight Knight looking at me with intrigue... I think. I couldn't see his face.

"You're... you're one of them, aren't you? A winged angel?" he asked me.

"I am, I just lost my wings in an incident. You're very astute, I must admit," I said to him with a smile.

"Okay... I shall await your return here. Then we can head off in search for Brigadoom together," the Wight Knight said.

"I promise we'll help you find out where Mona is," I said to him as Stella looked at me with a smile.

"I hope you know what you're doing, little miss Celestrian," Stella smirked at me as we proceeded back to Stornway.

* * *

"So... let me get this straight..." the king said after we explained to him what had happened. "You're telling me that the Wight Knight thought my daughter was someone else, someone that used to live in Brigadoom? How could anyone live in that place when it has been in ruins for centuries?" the king asked, me raising an eyebrow at that.

"Wait, wait, wait... Brigadoom has been in ruins for centuries?... Then that could only mean that this Wight Knight was in some kind of stasis for this long... but the only kind of magic I know of that could have that kind of power against someone is the darkest of witchcraft... there must be some kind of witch in Brigadoom, but who?..." Carl said with confusion.

"A witch? I have heard of a small rhyme that talks of Brigadoom, but... oh damn, it's slipped my memory..." Simona frowned, her language making the king gasp. "I think that one of our old maids used to sing it to me in the past. Her name is Alanna and she lives in Zere now. Maybe if you can find her, you'll learn of where Brigadoom is and what exactly happened to it," Simona said.

"Well, we did learn one thing other than that... apparently, the Wight Knight thought you were his beloved Mona because you have a necklace that he recognized as Mona's... if you don't mind, may I be allowed to touch it? I-I have an ability that can let me see things in the past by touching certain objects related to the event," Ina said, me smiling at that.

"Oh, of course! Here, it's right in my purse," Simona said as she presented her necklace, me recognizing that it was quite old and had a few jewels in it that made it look beautiful. Ina then touched it and gasped, the scenery changing around us suddenly as we then saw something we didn't expect. It was Brigadoom, it looking quite nice for a kingdom and a woman looking strikingly similar to Simona rushing out of the kingdom as I saw some purple mist emerge from the castle. The mist caused the ground to become gray and lifeless and it turned nearby puddles into poison.

"Oh, my beloved Right Knight... I'm so sorry... I can't save you... I pray someone defeats the wicked Morag... I will find a way to be with you if you break from her control. Even if it takes a thousand score and one years, I will save you from your suffering..." the woman said with a noble voice as she then ran off into the distance and to the south, me seeing a town to her left that looked to have a giant tree in it.

The vision then ended and all of us were agape. "Morag... I've heard of that witch before. She lulls people to be her loyal servants with dark arts and they stay in catatonic state while she has sex with them while under her control. She's extremely deadly in terms of her spell mastery and she has the power to make anyone fall under her spell... anyone except a Celestrian, that is. Not to mention that, from what that vision said, the area to the southeast of Brigadoom is Zere," the queen said, her words near the end making a wide smile form on my face.

"Did you say Celestrian?" I smiled widely.

"Yes, I did. Why? Do you know one?" she asked. I simply smiled and touched her arm, her gasping when she saw my ally in Stella. "W-WHOA! A fairy creature?" she gasped.

"Just fairy to you, miss queen," Stella smirked as my allies then got the idea to touch King Schott and Simona, them also gasping at Stella's presence.

"Great scott! You're all blessed by the Celestrians?" the king gawked.

"If by that you mean that they got some of my powers because they ingested some of my wing feathers, then yes," I said as I showed them my backside, me having put holes in my armor myself to show them off.

"My word... you may be able to relieve the issue of this witch for good! All you need to do is go to Brigadoom and defeat this witch! And I'm sure that if you found out who Mona's ancestor is, you may be able to have the Wight Knight be able to depart from us," the king said, me frowning and face palming.

"My king, no need to cause issue, but I believe that Simona is actually her ancestor. The resemblance between her and Mona in the vision was impressively similar. The only thing different about them was their eye color," I said with a smile.

"Hmm... I have an idea!" Simona said with a smile.

"What's your plan?" King Schott asked her.

"I'll accompany you to Brigadoom, but I shall wait outside of the castle until you defeat the wicked witch. I will also have some guards from the castle to help me to the lower levels after Morag is defeated. Then, I will pose as Mona and dance with the Wight Knight. I'm sure he can move onto the afterlife if I do that. Then he can be with Mona forever," Simona said with sparkling eyes.

"Hmm... sounds like a very good plan, honestly. I'll leave the castle with Evac to let you know when Morag is defeated. Just me, though," Ina said with a smile.

"I trust you to look after my daughter, Mariana the Celestrian. May the Almighty and the Goddess Celestria be with you," King Schott said with concern on his face.

"Don't worry. No harm will come to her at all. We promise," I smiled at him with a courtesy bow as we then got ready to depart for Brigadoom. "So this place is to the northeast of this Zere place, is it? Then let's go tell the Wight Knight and we can head off to the north!" Stella smirked. I smiled at her as she then turned into her smaller form and flew into my pocket, me smiling at her antics.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

After our group got guards to protect Simona and we proceeded out towards the Wight Knight's area of Loch Storn, I told her to stay behind and hide so that the Wight Knight didn't get suspicious of our progress. "I understand. We'll proceed after you guys once you're past Zere," Simona said with a smile after that, her and her guards hiding behind a rock and waiting for us while we met with the Wight Knight, him on his steed again.

"Did you find out anything about Brigadoom?" the Wight Knight asked us.

"Why yes we have, Right Knight," I said, using the words that Mona used in the vision we all saw.

"Right Knight?... Yes, that is what I was called in the past... but how did you know that?" he asked.

"It's because... well, that necklace you told us of that belonged to Mona? I touched it and received a vision... she called you the Right Knight as she ran away from Brigadoom as some kind of purple mist demolished the place. And Brigadoom is to the far north, past Loch Storn and past Zere, up to the northern tip of the continent," Ina said with her usual shyness.

"Brigadoom is in danger?... Then I guess we should rush off instantly! Northward, ho!" the Wight Knight exclaimed as he issued his horse to rush out and towards the north, us following behind him and rushing after him, taking care of any enemies in our way by simply slicing them across the face with our weapons. However, when we got to the more northern areas, we saw that there was something that would complicate our mission. What was it? Poison water in a canyon area as well as a dark mist produced by it. The Wight Knight proceeded through it without trouble, the mist not affecting him at all. So I did the brave/stupid thing and breathed in the air, me seeing it had no ill effects on me.

"Okay, the air is safe, the water isn't. Come on," I said as I had to cast Safe Protection in order for us to cross the poisonous water, us then crossing it and also coming across some other monsters in the form of Bodkin Fletchers, Ram Raiders, Cumauluses (evil clouds... yeah, I don't get it either), and some Skeletons with swords. And once we found Brigadoom, we saw that the place was in ruins, the buildings all but destroyed and there being some monsters in the place too.

And the Wight Knight? He looked devastated. "Oh goddess... my beloved kingdom, reduced to this! I must amend this! Come! Let us go to the throne room!" the Wight Knight exclaimed as we rushed after him after he got off his steed and we proceeded through the place until we got to the top of a ruined castle, the door there being locked.

"Hmm. The door is locked? Stand back, I can handle this," Ina said with a smile as she proceeded forward and did something I didn't expect. She did a small dance and, after her dance was completed (which included waving her arms and doing some belly movements) we all heard a click on the other side of the door.

"Cool! You can unlock doors with a simple dance?" Stella gawked at her.

"It's one of the first types of dances that a Luminary can learn. Very handy if you accidentally locked yourself out of your house," she smiled with her usual quietness. We proceeded down the stairs on the other side and we felt an air of foreboding tension surround us, almost as if something horrid was about to come after us.

"Okay, we're almost to the throne room," the Wight Knight said as he had us go through a door and we saw something that we gawked at. It was a demoness that had thorns for legs, her dress being attached to her body and making her body look provocative, she had giant demon wings, held a knife in her hand, and she had red, piercing eyes on her blueish-gray skin. "YOU! Now I remember! You're the wicked witch, Morag! You kept me held prisoner here as your plaything for years! Tell me! What have you done to my beloved Mona?!" the Wight Knight exclaimed at her in anger.

Morag then snickered at the Wight Knight. "Your beloved Mona is no more... gone from the centuries passed on since I put you under my spell... now that you have returned, and with some new friends, I can have fun once again... now be mine," Morag said with a snicker as she tried to cast a spell on the Wight Knight, but I went in front of him and held my arms out.

"You want him? You gotta go through us!" I said as my allies joined me.

"How pitiful... very well, you shall be my first playthings... how I've wanted to be with females for so long," Morag snickered as she cast a spell of dark magic at us and, thanks to me being a Celestrian and my allies having my powers from my feathers, we simply shrugged it off like it was nothing, which Morag gasped at. "Impossible! No mere mortal can withstand my powerful magics! Unless... oh no... you're not... you couldn't be! You don't have wings!" Morag gasped at us afterwards.

"I may have lost my wings during that earthquake, but I assure you that I am full blooded Celestrian, bitch. And my allies ate my feathers, so they have my same powers," I smiled as I produced my sword and my allies pointed their weapons at her too, Morag looking quite terrified. "Now here's how it's going to go down, Morag. Either you give up and we kill you instantly, or you fight us and die slowly and painfully. Take your choice," I smiled as I formed a fireball in my hand.

"W-WAIT! Please! Don't kill me!" Morag exclaimed.

"Why shouldn't we? You killed this entire kingdom and broke up a happy couple between the Right Knight and Princess Mona, so why should we let you live after the crimes you committed?" Carl asked her.

"I didn't kill anyone! I simply had them under my spell! I let them go after I was done with them, but not the Right Knight. I... I love him!" Morag said, her words making me frown at how she was speaking.

"Just because you love someone, that doesn't mean that you should break up a happy couple, Morag. I'm sure that, if you would've just tried to speak with Mona and the Right Knight, that they may have allowed you to be a part of their relationship. Polygamy is legal in this world, after all, so why? Why go through all this trouble?" I frowned at her.

Morag gasped as she looked at the Right Knight and her eyes produced blood-red tears. "I-Is it true? Would you have allowed me to also be your wife if we just... talked? Would you have possibly done that, Right Knight?" Morag asked him, the knight looking at her with a frown.

"If you would've done that, then yes, I would've contemplated and probably would've allowed you as my wife along with Mona... but after what you have done to me, the fact I will never see my beloved Mona again... that is the truest form of anguish I will ever feel. I will never see her again, all because of you," the Wight Knight said, Morag sobbing and breaking down into tears at this, me looking at her with a frown before I then looked at Ina with a smile.

"Bring her in," I said to her, Ina gasping, but then nodding as she cast Evac and we waited.

"What are you doing?" Morag asked with her eyes being closed and producing red tears.

"I want you to see someone important. I want both of you to see someone very important," I said... but just as soon as I said that, something happened that I didn't expect. Out of nowhere, I saw a spirit appear in front of me that I never would've guessed to appear before us.

"W-What the... M-Mona?" the Wight Knight gawked at her appearance as she looked at him and Morag with a smile.

"Yes, it is me... my beloved Right Knight," Mona smiled at him as she then looked at Morag. "Morag... if you really wish to love my beloved fiance... I think I know how to do that... but it would require you to do something that I don't know if you'd be willing to do," Mona said, her words making me gasp. Spirits were able to do something that only they could do and only if someone of the willing allowed them to do so. What was this? Simple. They would merge their spirits with that of the living person, causing both of them to turn into a cross of what both looked like.

"You mean... merging with me?..." Morag asked as I noticed Simona looking on from inside the entrance with Ina holding onto her arm.

"That way, both of us can be with our beloved Right Knight... and we can move on together to the afterlife, together. And since you would be part human from the merge, you'd move onto the same place that all humans go to rather than the demon realm," Mona said with a smile.

Morag smiled and nodded. "Go ahead... I'm willing..." Morag said at that as the Right Knight looked on with his hands clasped together. Morag and Mona then merged their bodies together and, after a small light show, we saw what Morag now looked like with both spirits in the same body. She now had a more humanoid appearance as well as Mona's yellow eyes. She also had her hair a mixture of her original purple and Mona's brown. She also lost her thorny legs and instead grew regular human legs. Her dress was now the same as Mona's and she still had a small bit of blueish-grey color to her skin, but other parts being regular white.

"Both Mona and Morag in the same body... come, loves. Let us do the dance of love," the Right Knight said, holding out his hand for the new woman-demon to take. The duo then started to dance together and, after dancing for a bit, both of them started to glow brightly and they floated into the air. "I must thank you, my friends... you have lifted a heavy burden from me... you are the kindest and most forgiving adventurers I have ever met... farewell..." the Right Knight said as he then hugged and kissed his new wives in one body as they disappeared to the afterlife, Stella smiling and picking up the benevolessence they dropped.

"I can't believe it... I actually got to see Princess Mona's spirit... and she willingly merged herself with Morag, the wicked witch... though it looks like she wasn't all wicked... your group is amazing. I'm glad that you helped our kingdom, Mariana and friends... and Stella too," Simona smiled at us, the fairy smiling at her as she then looked at her hands and smiled.

"Remind me that, after we're done with our adventures, you let me do your nails, Princess Simona. You'll love how I make them look," Stella smiled, offering her business once more.

"I would like that... shall we depart back to Stornway?" Simona smiled.

"Lead the way, Simona," I smiled at her, making her giggle as we proceeded back to Stornway after our adventure had been completed.

* * *

After we returned to Stornway and explained what had went down at Brigadoom, the king and queen were incredibly impressed with us. "Your group is very amazing! You managed to peacefully defeat not only the Wight Knight, but also Morag the witch. I don't normally do this, but I think I should... you can help yourselves to whatever you want from my family treasury," the king smiled at us, making me smile at his offer.

"Thank you, King Schott. It was our pleasure," I smiled at him. We then were led to the treasury and we grabbed some different loot from the chests, making sure to leave his money there for him. We didn't want him to go bankrupt, after all. We just took anything that was equipment. I got a cool Summer Cloud Hat and a pair of Impregnable Leggings and each of my partners got a brand new weapon that they all loved. Ina got a Gringham Whip, Carl got a Wrymwand, and Harley got a Giant's Hammer, which she held without issue. But when I tried to hold it, it ended up falling down to the ground because of me actually being very weak compared to her.

"Oh my goodness, how are you able to lift this giant hammer with one hand and a giant shield in the other?!" I gawked at Harley.

"Years of practice and training," she smirked at me with a wink.

We then proceeded out of the castle and we saw that Stella was already hard at work collecting benevolessence, which she was flying all over town picking it up... shame we couldn't see it though. "Whoo! We got a crap ton of benevolessence from all the townsfolk! I hope this is enough to juice up the Starflight Express," Stella smirked as we proceeded out of the place and went towards the broken down heavenly train, us entering it and, upon Stella going inside, the train actually had a small sputter, but it then turned back off.

"Damn, the gauges say that we only have 80 percent power. We need 100 percent power in order to get this thing off the ground," Stella said.

"So we need more benevolessence? I have an idea... I'd heard of a town to the east of Stornway called Coffinwell. It is sure to have some issues that may need solving, you know?" Harley smiled.

"Good idea. Let's go there," I smiled.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

Once we crossed the border into the eastern part of the continent, we got to an area that had orange grass and had the leaves orange as well. But there were also some very odd monsters in this area, including Leafy Larrikins, Clockwerk Cuckoos, and Sluggers. We eventually found the town and, just by looking around the town, we knew that something was wrong. All the citizens were coughing like crazy and we saw that the citizens that weren't coughing were wearing cloth around their face. "Okay, something is very wrong here... I wonder what it could be?" I asked aloud as we came upon a certain house that looked like the mayor's dwelling.

"Maybe the mayor can tell us what's going on?" Stella asked as we proceeded into the house and up the stairs to see the mayor in question.

"Excuse me, sir. Are you the mayor of Coffinwell?" Carl asked him.

"Yes, I am... though you have come at a grave time, travelers," he said. "You see, after the earthquake hit our land, something started to happen to our town. Our citizens started getting an incurable disease that only afflicts members of Coffinwell. Doctor Phlegming is trying to figure out what is causing it, but that no-good doctor isn't going to be up to the task on his own!" the mayor said.

"Where can we find him?" I asked.

"He's usually in the confines of his lab at the bottom of town. But he only opens the door for my daughter and his wife, Cattarhina. She lives on the western side of town, so go there to speak with her," the mayor said.

"O-Of course," Ina said with shyness as we left his dwelling and went to the house in question, seeing an adorable young woman with green hair done in a hairband, white stockings, pink shoes, and wearing a ruffled pink and white dress.

"Excuse me? Are you Cattarhina? We wish to speak with Doctor Phlegming about this disease," Harley asked her, Cattarhina smiling and approaching us.

"You must be adventurers, right? Okay, I'll lead you there. My dear Phlegmy is trying to figure out how to stop this contagion, bless his heart... hack! Ack!... Oh, sorry..." Cattarhina coughed, making me a little worried.

"Are you okay, Cattarhina? You just coughed like the villagers are," I asked her with seriousness.

Cattarhina sighed and shook her head. "I believe I may also be coming down with this dreaded contagion... but please don't tell anyone that? If they found out, they'd get even more unwell from the depression," Cattarhina said. Though I wanted to alert the people, I had to respect her reasoning.

"Okay, we promise. Can you please lead us to Phlegming?" I asked. Cattarhina nodded and led us out the door and down some stairs to a door that led into an alleyway. She then knocked on the door in a very peculiar order. "Bonk, bonk, bababa, bonk," she knocked on the door, Phlegming immediately opening to door to show what he looked like. Phlegming looked to be a middle-aged man with short, red curly hair, wore glasses on his face, and he had on a doctor's uniform with stethoscope included around his neck.

"Oh! Cattarhina! I see you've brought some adventurers," the doctor said.

"Yes, and they wish to help you fight this contagion," she said as we all entered his lab and we saw there were quite a few books as well as his desk containing some detailed drawings of a strange anomaly. It looked to be a monster that was shaped like a giant amalgamation of gas with three eyes on his face.

"This is the contagion that has been awoken in the Quarantomb, which is a ruin that is to the west of here," Phlegming said with a frown. "It was apparently sealed there a long time ago, but the recent earthquake must have broken the seal. I think I can fix the seal and seal him away again, but I need help from some adventurers that are more adept at combat than I am. And that is where you come in," Phlegming said to us.

"Sounds like this is going to be filled with tension. I like tension. Shall we head off?" I smiled at him.

"Of course, we shall depart immediately. I'll head to the Quarantomb ahead of you to scope the area out," Phlegming said as he walked out of the lab and I turned around, Cattarhina gasping at my back.

"Y-You're..." she gawked at me.

"Yes, I am. Don't spread word of it, please? People have a hard time believing in Celestrians when they're in despair," I said to her with a smile.

"O-Okay... hey, before you go... I wanted to ask something," Cattarhina said to me, getting my attention. "If I happen to die... I want to be able to speak to Phlegming through you... can you please do that for me?" she asked with a smile before wheezing again.

"You have my word," I smiled at her as our group then proceeded out towards the Quarantomb and we came across even more monsters. There were Chariot Chappies, Morphean Mushrooms, Flythons (snakes with giant wings and fangs), and even Crabids, which were giant crabs that were drooling at the mouth. And when we arrived at the Quarantomb, we saw that Phlegming was already there and that he was standing in front of a large hole that had emerged.

"Ah, you're here. I've checked the area around here and it looks like we'll need to connect some light beams to a door in order to reach the room holding the contagion," Phlegming said.

"Okay, so where are these lights?" I asked.

"There should be a switch on the northeastern and northwestern corners of the tomb that will activate lights. Then all you need to do is turn the mirrors in the Quarantomb to direct the lights towards the door. Once you do that, we can combat the contagion and seal it away," Phlegming said.

"Sounds like a plan, l-let's go," Ina said as we proceeded into the tomb and we immediately came upon some enemies that looked pretty mean-spirited (get it? pun?... eh...). These enemies included Mean Spirits, Magus, Mummy Boys, and Earthenwarriors, which were clay warriors brought to life through magic. The Earthenwarriors were especially dangerous because their clay bodies gave them incredible physical defense, meaning we had to attack them with our spells instead. We eventually got the switches activated and redirected the lights to hit the door, them disappearing after the door opened, all of us and Phlegming going inside of it and seeing a room filled with urns and a single urn looking to have a crack in it.

"I have a feeling this urn is the one that held the contagion. I think I can seal it again with some special sealant, so just watch my back while I work," Phlegming said as something then happened. A strange laughing bellowed through the room and something horrifying appeared from atop the pot.

"Ssssoooo! You wish to defeat me?! No one can defeat the Contagion! And I'll keep on Ragin' and Ragin' AND RAGIN'! Heeheeheehaaww!" the monster exclaimed, his voice sounding like a distorted gargling sound.

"Hey! Big scary thing!... Uh... your face is dumb!" Ina said, trying to be fearless, but me seeing she was very scared.

"Issss that the bessht you got?! I'ma gonna rage all over you!" he exclaimed as he then tried to attack her with a Crack spell, Ina dodging it and answering back with a crack of her whip, it actually damaging the monster. I then smiled and cast a Frizzle spell, hitting him with the blast and causing him to groan and moan.

"Seriously? You're not strong against us at all! Here, take a hammer to the face," Harley smirked as she smashed the hammer directly into his middle eye, causing the contagion to groan in agony as I noticed Phlegming had finally finished the repairs.

"YES! Great sealing urn! I implore you! Seal this contagion once more!" Phlegming commanded, the contagion getting sucked into the urn slowly but surely.

"NO! Not the ding durned pot again! NNNOOOOOOoooooo!" he exclaimed as he was finally sealed in the pot and the lid closed and locked itself automatically.

"Whew, it's done. Now everyone in Coffinwell will be cured of their ailments. Let's go back," Phlegming smiled... but I knew that there would be the possibility that it would fade when he got home.

* * *

Once we got back to Coffinwell, we made our way to Cattarhina's house and saw that it was dusk, meaning that it would be nighttime soon. And when we opened the door to see if Cattarhina was in, we saw her laying on her bed. She looked so peaceful... but when I touched her body, it was cold as ice. And she wasn't breathing. "Oh... Oh my god..." Ina gasped in horror. It was then that Phlegming came into the house and looked at us with confusion.

"Excuse me, do you know where Cattarhina is?" he asked us as I looked at him with tears in my eyes and moved aside, showing Cattarhina's body on the bed.

Phlegming then approached her and gasped when he felt her forehead. "Oh no... OH GODDESS NO! Cattarhina! Why didn't you tell me you were sick? Oh Cattarhina..." Phlegming exclaimed as he broke down into tears, me noticing that the sun had went down completely and the moon had risen. And that exact moment it happened? I saw her spirit, right there in the room, right behind Phlegming.

"Phlegming... I want you to look at me for a second," I said to him, getting his attention away from Cattarhina's body. "Grab my hand and look behind you," I said to him, Phlegming looking confused until he did that, him literally jumping when he saw Cattarhina's spirit right behind him, looking at him with tears in her ghastly eyes.

"Phlegmy?... Can you see me?" she asked, Phlegming producing more tears as he looked at her in shock.

"I... I can see you and hear you... is this a dream?" he asked.

"No, it's not a dream. It's the power of the Celestrian," Cattarhina smiled, pointing at me and I smirked.

"A-A Celestrian?... But.. where are your wings?" Phlegming asked me. I smiled and showed him my back, revealing my little featherless wings once again. "Oh my... so when I touch you, I can see the dead?" Phlegming asked.

"Not just the dead, but also me and all other divine beings," Stella smirked as she flew out of my pocket and looked at Phlegming with a smile.

"My dear, Phlegmy..." Cattarhina said, looking at Phlegming with a smile. "I want you to know that my body has already been seen by my father... he's planning my funeral tomorrow... but before then, I wanted you to go around the town and speak with the different people that had the contagion. Get to know them and what great thing you have done for the good of this town... okay, hon?" Cattarhina asked Phlegming. He nodded at her afterwards.

"I will... I can do it..." Phlegming said to Cattarhina as I held onto his hand and we proceeded through the town, Cattarhina's spirit leading us to the different houses that had people that were infected by the contagion. They included an elderly couple, a man and his wife in the inn, and even a little girl that was on the east side of town. When we had finished looking around, Phlegming took us back to his lab and he smiled at Cattarhina.

"Now do you see why I married you, Phlegming?" Cattarhina smiled at him, making him look confused. "I married you against my father's wishes because I knew you were destined for greater things... even though you were an outsider to Coffinwell, I wanted you to show that you are worthy of being loved by these people... just as I loved you... even if my father still doesn't like you, know that I and the other citizens of Coffinwell are in your gratitude as well as these adventurers," Cattarhina smiled.

"Name's Mariana, just so you know," I smiled at her. But then, Cattarhina started to float from the ground and started to shine brightly, Phlegming looking at her in sadness.

"Don't go, Cattarhina..." he said with sadness in his eyes.

"Don't worry, my dear Phlegmy... I'm not going away forever... I'll always be with you, even if you can't see me... I love you... always... from now until the end of time..." Cattarhina smiled as her body then disappeared into the air with a brighter flash than the other spirits that I had gotten to the afterlife in the past.

"Oh my... she was a pure-hearted person..." Stella gawked as she collected the benevolessence off of the ground and Phlegming smiled as he wiped his eyes with a tissue.

"The purest person I've ever met... I'll always remember her message to me... she will always be there with me... even if I can't see her..." Phlegming smiled as he looked at our group. "I must thank you greatly, Mariana and friends... without your help, I wouldn't have been able to save Coffinwell nor would I have learned of my love's final message... I am forever in your debt," Phlegming smiled as Stella then smiled and picked up his benevolessence. "What's she doing?" he asked.

"She's collecting your gratitude in the form of benevolessence, We need it in order for me to go home," I smiled at him.

"You mean... the Observatory?" he asked. I nodded at him.

"Without my wings, I can't very well fly up there. So Stella, the stewardess of the Starflight Express, is going to get us there. It just needs benevolessence in order to function," I explained.

"And Cattarhina's benevolessence? It's the biggest piece of it I've ever seen... it's so full of gratitude and pureness of heart that it's making me have butterflies just holding it in my grasp..." Stella smiled.

"Okay then... I really don't want you to be around for Cattarhina's funeral, and you probably need to get back to the Observatory ASAP... so I guess this is farewell," Phlegming smiled at me as he held out his hand and I shook it.

"I'll come back after our adventures are done... because something tells me that, even after we go to the Observatory, we may get another job in the process," I said.

"Oh yeah? What kind of job?" Carl smiled.

"The job of collecting the legendary Fyggs from Yggdrasil that also fell to the Protectorate. In the wrong hands, they are very dangerous, especially in mortal hands," I said.


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

After proceeding back to the Starflight Express, upon Stella getting Cattarhina and Phlegming's benevolessence into the train, it immediately sprang to life and all the lights inside flipped on and the engine started to rev itself. "Oh hell yeah! The Starflight Express is operational again!" Stella exclaimed once all of us got on the train. "Now to flip the switch and make this thing fly!" she smiled as she pushed a few buttons then flipped a switch, us feeling a slight bump as the train suddenly flew into the air and Stella then pulled a cord and the whistle blew, us looking out the back door and seeing that the other carriages actually reappeared the moment the whistle blew!

"Whoa! This train is awesome!" Ina exclaimed in excitement.

"You better believe it! You're the first mortals that are going to see the Observatory with your own eyes. You should feel honored," Stella smirked at my allies, them smiling at this fact, but none more so than Carl.

"I can't believe I get to see the legendary Observatory! It's every Sage's dream to see that place of beauty!" he smiled with excitement himself.

"Well, Stella. We're waiting, so please, set this train off for the Observatory!" I smirked at her, Stella looking to hesitate for a bit before pushing some buttons and then taking the steering wheel and actually pulling it upwards and into the sky, us amazed at how, even though we were now completely vertical inside of the train, we were still standing upright!

"Oh my gosh, this train is so cool! We're still upright, but the train is going up 90 degrees!" Harley gawked as we saw something appear on the sides. The clouds were dark and brooding, most likely due to the dark magic that was caused by those light pillars. But we eventually saw it. The Observatory soon appeared from our point of view and I saw Apus Major and a lot of other Celestrians standing by Yggdrasil and praying before coming to the side circle as the Starflight Express docked on the side of the circle.

"The Almighty has given us clarity!" I heard Apus Major say on the other side of the door as it slid open, me emerging from it afterwards and him looking shocked at my presence, along with the humans that I had brought with me. "M-Mariana? Is that you? What happened to your wings? And why do you have mortal humans with you?" Apus Major asked me.

"Yeah, a lot has happened ever since those dark pillars of light hurt the Observatory. I feel I should explain," I said as I began to tell them what had happened. "You see, after I got blown off the Observatory, I got hit by one of those light pillars and it made me so tuckered out that I couldn't let out my wings. The velocity of my fall made my feathers fall off of my wings completely, which some of them were found by these three humans and they happened to ingest them in soup without knowledge of what they were, which is why they are able to see the divine realm," I explained to them.

"Yeah... apologies for doing that. Had we known they were Celestrian wing feathers, we would've left them alone," Carl said with a worried expression on his face.

"Better humans with a good heart than those with bad hearts. What else can you tell me of what happened?" Apus Major asked.

"Well, the Observatory wasn't the only place that got affected by those light pillars. Around the same time, a massive earthquake happened in the Protectorate that managed to cause a pass to get blocked between Angel Falls and Stornway, a legendary knight and a wicked witch to awake from slumber, and a magic contagion to be released from a sealing urn, causing the town of Coffinwell to have sickness for all natives. All of them have been resolved by our group minus the rubble blocking the pass. The pass was cleared out by Stornway's soldiers," I explained to him.

"Dear goddess... the Protectorate also suffered issues... but we have more pressing matters to discuss," Apus Major said as he led me and my group down to his meeting area and he gave us the rundown. "You see, we happened to lose some Celestrians to the winds as well, them falling to the Protectorate just as you have, Mariana. Not only that, but other Celestrians sent to find and rescue them haven't appeared back ever since. Even Aquila has disappeared trying to search for you in particular," Apus Major explained, me gasping at that.

"M-Master Aquila is missing? Oh no... oh no oh no oh no! What if he ends up like Corvus? Missing forever? We need to find him!" I said with serious worry in my voice.

"But an even more pressing matter are the Fyggs. Mariana mentioned that they are extremely dangerous and unpredictable in the hands of mortals, so we need to try and find them as soon as possible before anyone gets hurt by them," Harley said.

"Indeed. But about your wings, Mariana... I think you should go to mighty Yggdrasil and pray that you will get them back. Maybe she will hear your prayers," Apus Major said. I smiled and nodded at that, looking at my allies with seriousness.

"I need to pray alone. In the meantime, you should report back to Stella. I'll let you know if Yggdrasil gives me an answer or gives me my wings back," I said to them. My friends all nodded at that and I proceeded towards the giant tree of Yggdrasil, me kneeling down to it and praying as hard as I could. "Mighty Yggdrasil, protecting tree of the Observatory... I beg you for help... I have lost the feathers of my wings and my Master is missing... and your all-powerful Fyggs have been swept to the Protectorate... I beg of you, please... give me some answers... how do I get my feathers back? Where can I find the Fyggs? What is the cause of the dark magics that assaulted both the heavenly realm and the mortal realm?... Just one answer is all I ask..." I prayed, me actually producing tears in the process after asking for my feathers back.

I didn't expect an answer, but I actually got one. Mighty Yggdrasil spoke to me! "Mariana... Guardian of Angel Falls..." I heard her serene, calming voice in my head. "You are a special Celestrian... you losing your wings may not have been according to fate... but due to this outcome, you have been given the great gift to show the humans of the Protectorate the spiritual realm... I do not know how you can get your wing feathers back... nor do I know what caused these dark magics... but I do want to grant you a gift... in order to find the Fyggs and find out who was the source of the dark magics... I grant you the gift of special trees to dock the Starflight Express at... and a special spell to visit places you have visited in the past... the Zoom spell," Yggdrasil said, me gasping as a small aura of light occurred around my body and I immediately knew the spell to cast Zoom. "Thank you, mighty Yggdrasil... I will find your Fyggs. I promise," I said to her as I then bowed to the tree and went down to the Starflight Express, me seeing the others and them looking disappointed that I didn't have my wings.

"Yggdrasil couldn't give me my wings back... but she did tell me of where we can start to find the Fyggs and gave me the knowledge of the Zoom spell," I said to them, Ina gawking at that.

"You h-have the Zoom spell? That's a legendary spell discovered by very few!" she said with amazement.

"And what do you mean where we can start to find the Fyggs?" Stella asked.

"Yggdrasil told me of special trees that we can dock the Starflight Express at..." I said, me gasping as I suddenly got a vision of a unique tree by a giant place that I'd heard of during my studies with Apus Major in the past. Alltrades Abbey. "And apparently one tree is by Alltrades Abbey. I think that should be our first stop," I said, Stella smirking at that.

"Well, you're in luck! I'm after an old mate of mine and you're after magical fruit! I think we can work together! I'll help you find those Fyggs and you'll help me find ol' Fatguts!" Stella smiled, Ina and me almost laughing out loud from her name.

"Okay, please tell me that's just a nickname," I snickered.

"Yeah, it's his nickname I call him... anyways, let's go off to this tree in question!" Stella smirked as she hit some buttons and switches and then got on the wheel, turning the train downwards and us smiling at how we were now pointing down and we were still standing upright.

"I wonder what would happen if we jumped while like this!" Ina smiled as she did just that and she ended up flying up to the back of the train and her looking shocked by that.

"Oh yeah, probably should've told ya not to jump. Gravity only exists for you while you're on the floor," Stella smirked at her, me smiling at how Ina got mad at her.

"You may be a divine creature, but you are quite naughty," Ina said to her as we got back to normal leveling and we saw the tree in question, it being light blue in appearance.

"Okay, this should be a soft landing... after we land, just walk out the door and you'll be warped to the ground," Stella smiled as we walked out the door and we appeared directly on the ground.

"Okay, let's head off for the Abbey. It's been so long since I've been there... it's where I went to become a Paladin in the first place," Harley smiled.


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

Once we approached Alltrades Abbey, we immediately noticed that something was very wrong. Why did we know this? Because the Abbot, who was the Jack of Alltrades at Alltrades Abbey and the one responsible for changing your vocations? He was nowhere to be found and numerous different people looked annoyed at them having to wait for him. "I wonder where the Abbot went off to? Normally he doesn't leave his post at all," Carl said with confusion as we then decided to ask around.

We went to the guy who was telling people to wait and we asked him first. "Excuse me, sir? Do you happen to know where the Abbot is?" Harley asked him.

"The Abbot has stepped out for awhile to go the Tower of Trades. No one but the clergy are allowed in that place," the man said.

"Um... I'm with the clergy. I'm a Sage under the training of Mistress Sandras of Gleeba," Carl said, him bowing before the man.

"Oh? You are a member of the clergy? Then maybe you could help with the issue we face," the man said, me looking at the group behind us.

"Um, if you guys don't mind, could you possibly wait somewhere else? I'm not trying to say you won't be able to change jobs, but it's private matters... please understand," I smiled at the crowd, one of them about to protest before one of them whispered into his ear.

"She's a what? You sure?" the guy who was gonna protest said.

"I saw some strange things on her back. She has wing membranes, but no wing feathers... she's one of the beings on high," another person said, making the man behind me gasp as he saw them too.

"Yes, yes, I'm a Celestrian," I sighed.

"Could you please go to the resting area for now? I promise, we'll try and find out where the Abbot is," Carl said, the crowd then dispersing to the right and down some stairs, leaving us alone with the clergy man.

"Had I known that you were a Celestrian, madame, I would've listened to you right on the spot... please forgive me," the man said.

"No need to be modest. Can you please tell us what this issue is and if it happens to involve a glowing fruit?" I asked him, the man gasping when I said 'glowing fruit'.

"H-How'd you know that it involved a golden fruit?" the man asked in shock. "Anyways, yes... the Abbot also known as the Jack of Alltrades, found a glowing fruit in the waters surrounding the Abbey and claimed he saw it fall from the heavens. He ingested it and ever since, he's been inside of the Tower of Trades. It's been 4 days now and he still hasn't emerged... I'm getting awful worried... could you please go in there and try to see what's going on?" the man asked.

"Of course. After all, the fruit in question is a Fygg from Yggdrasil. In Celestrian hands, they are the key to our ascension to Almighty Zenus... but in mortal hands, the results could spell disaster. If he's eaten it, then I can only assume that he might have something going on with him," I said to him.

"Oh my! You must save him then! Just remember. In order to enter the Tower of Trades, you need to bow to the door to gain access," the man said.

"Understood. We'll take our leave now. Don't worry, we'll save the Jack of Alltrades," Carl said with a smile.

We then proceeded after Carl as he led us to the east and we saw a very tall tower, which Ina gawked at. "So this is the Tower of Trades... it's been said that this tower was built for Abbots to gain their powers over vocational mastery from the Almighty Zenus. The top of the tower is said to be filled to the brim with ancient magics," Ina said as I bowed to the door like I'd been doing and the door immediately opened up for us.

"Let's go inside," I said as we proceeded into the tower and we saw that it too had monsters within. Some of the beasts included Slime Knights, Badboons, Mushroom Mages, and even Restless Armor, which were reanimated suits of knight armor. We moved up the floors one by one, noting that all of them were quite easy to navigate despite the presence of the monsters.

And when we reached the top of the tower, the 7th floor, we saw a staircase made of light that led to a room that I could sense had tons of magical might within it. We proceeded forward and we saw the Abbot in the center of the room with the area filled with tons of magical lights. "Oh my... all the magic here... it's amazing..." Stella gawked as we saw the Abbot and he heard our footsteps.

"Who are you and how did you find this place?" the Abbot asked.

"My name is Mariana, Celestial Guardian of Angel Falls. You are the Jack of Alltrades, correct?" I asked him.

"Yes, that is who I am," he growled lowly, me immediately noting that he wasn't in a good mood. And I had a feeling why.

"Abbot, I need you to listen to me... you're not your normal self right now. That golden fruit you ate is incredibly dangerous in the hands of us humans. Please, just come with us," Carl said to him gently.

The Abbot, however, immediately turned around and we saw that he was not happy. In fact, he looked like he had been taken over by the fruit! "YOU FOOLS! I will use this divine fruit to become the ruler over the entire world! Now, watch as I transform into a god fit enough to rule mankind and angels alike!" he exclaimed as his body started to morph and turn into something that looked nothing more than a monster.

His body grew at least 10 inches, his skin became rough and scaly, he gained insectoid armor on his shoulders, arms, and legs, his skin color turned to orange-brown with rings on them like a worm's, his head turned into that of a demon, and he grew a large tail that had a stinger on the end of it. Not to mention, his arms had giant blades protruding from his knuckles!

"H-He's a monster!" Ina gasped as she hid behind Harley for protection.

"What have I become?... Ah... maybe this new form is not the form for ruling, but for destruction! And I shall start my reign of terror with you! I am the Master of Nu'un!" the Abbot exclaimed in a heavily distorted voice, me immediately taking up my sword as I then rushed him and connected the blade to his tail, me shocked at how I managed to slice it off in one swoop!

"GAH! You'll pay for that, wingless angel!" he exclaimed in fury as he tried to stab me with his knuckle spears and I parried it with my shield, continuing to do so until Harley rushed him with her giant hammer, connecting it to the transformed Abbot's face and him actually getting a bit dazed from the hit. "Oogh..." he groaned as Carl then chanted a spell and I smiled at what it was. It was a spell that I knew as "Heaven's Fury" and it was a skill that only a Sage could learn. Using it, he immediately cast it on the dazed Abbot and he hissed and growled as he then held onto his head and something incredible happened. He slowly turned back into his normal self, the Fygg actually appearing on the ground by his feet.

"Ogh... my aching head..." the Abbot groaned as I quickly swiped the Fygg before anything else could happen to it. "Huh?... Visitors?... What happened while I was out of it?... And why am I in the Tower of Trades?" he asked in confusion.

"This magical Fygg you ate four days ago made you go mad, Abbot. And as a result, you lost all sense of reasoning and turned into a monster, claiming you would destroy the world... you need to be careful of what you choose to eat... though this fruit may look heavenly, it is only heavenly to Celestrians. To a mortal, disaster happens to them, as shown with you," I said as I put the Fygg in my bag for safe keeping.

"All that happened because of one fruit?... I fear that I must apologize to you... as well as thank you for helping me out, miss..." he said. "Mariana, Celestrian. Guardian of Angel Falls," I smiled at him.

"I see... thank you for assisting me... let us depart for the Abbey. If you say I've been absent for 4 days, I must get back to my work," he said as he cast Evac and all of us ended up escaping, even Stella.

"Okay, now that we've got this Fygg, I say that we try and find the next one... let's take a look at the map," I said as I unfolded it and saw that we were actually on the island in the middle of the map. "Okay, it says that there's another town to the south of us called Porth Llaffan... odd name to call a town by the sea, but okay. Maybe they have a Fygg?" I asked.

"Good thinking," Harley smiled as we then proceeded due south.


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

Once we arrived in Porth Llaffan, we saw that something was happening that we were a bit perplexed about. A teenage girl with red hair in dual pigtails on the back of her head and wearing a leather dress and having a necklace with seashells on it. She looked to be doing a small prayer in the waters that made me confused. "Oh great Lleviathan... we humbly ask you to give us your blessing..." the girl said, me seeing something in the distance. A giant purple tail splashing the water and a whole slew of fish being sent to the shore! Enough to get at least 10 barrels full!

"Praise mighty Lleviathan!" the citizens exclaimed at that, the girl looking a bit troubled at that as she went through the crowds and towards a shack to the west.

"That girl looked awfully conflicted after doing that ritual thingy... and why the hell are these citizens worshiping a fucking fish? Do they not know the beauty of sissy Celestria or papa Zenus? Those are who they should be worshiping, not some overgrown sea creature!" Stella complained, actually swearing in frustration.

"You seem a little annoyed at that, Stella... is this a pet peeve of yours? People worshiping anything other than the Almighty and the goddess?" Ina asked her.

"You have no idea, little dancer girl," Stella groaned as she turned back into her little ball form and sat on top of my head as we proceeded to the girl's house, where we were sure to ask her some questions.

When we did so, we happened to have been stopped by a taller man with a handlebar mustache, wearing a blue shirt, and yellow overalls. "Who are you and what are you doing in my house?" the man asked.

"Sorry, we don't mean to intrude mister. We just wish to speak with the red-haired girl... we want to know some information about what just happened in the town," I said to him politely.

"Red-haired girl? You mean Jona? She's currently resting," he said, obviously lying.

"Sorry, but I don't like being lied to, mister. Your mustache twitched when you said that, but not when you spoke before. Now I suggest you speak truthfully in the presence of a Celestrian," I said to him, making him look at me with confusion before he started to laugh out loud.

"You seriously want to try and fool me with a story as unbelievable as that?! AHAHAHA!" he erupted in laughter, me grabbing onto his arms and him looking surprised before he gasped at the sudden appearance of Stella on my head. "What is that thing on your head?" he asked me.

"Thing? You're calling me a THING?! You obviously haven't seen a fairy before, have you?" Stella exclaimed as she flew off my head and turned into her normal form in front of him, shocking the man greatly at that.

"Oh my! Y-You really aren't joking, then... you really are a Celestrian!" he gasped.

"Yes. Now please, tell me where Jona is?" I asked him.

"Fine, I'll tell you. She's in her room right now," he said, me immediately moving past him with my group and him looking surprised when Stella disappeared from his vision. "Was that a magic trick?..." he asked.

"No, it wasn't. People lose their sight of the spiritual realm the moment they lose physical contact with me," I said to him as I then knocked on Jona's door and wondered how she was doing.

"Who's there?" Jona asked.

"Some visiting adventurers. We want to ask you about what had happened on the town shores just now," I said to her.

"Oh? Come in, then, quickly!" she said as she opened the door and we entered her room, seeing that it had a lot of fish-based items in it, including large harpoons, fishing lures, a large net being a makeshift hammock, and a picture of a man holding a little version of her.

"You... seem to have a fascination with fishing, huh?" Harley gawked at the stuff on the walls while I was more pressed in wondering who the man was, as it was not at all the same as the guy we had seen before.

"It's how we live in Porth Llaffan. We're a fishing village and we provide fish for our trade," Jona explained as I looked at her picture.

"Questions... 3 in fact. First off, what was that ritual about that you did in the middle of town? Second, what is the Lleviathan and how are you able to communicate with it? And Third, this picture has a different man than the one you're living with... which is your father?" I asked her all at once.

"I kind of hoped you wouldn't ask me the first two questions... you saw that scene, did you? The 'ritual'?" Jona asked, using air quotes around the word ritual.

"Yes, we did... but why the quotes?" I asked.

"Okay... I'll explain... not long ago, roughly four days ago, my father disappeared and he hasn't been found anywhere. But in the process, I went to the beach to pray after I learned this and, out of nowhere, the mighty Lleviathan that is talked about in legends among fishermen provided our entire town with fish... ever since, people have become extremely lazy in their fishing and rely solely on me to ask Lleviathan to give us fish... and that man that I live with? He's the town's mayor and he told me to keep the act going and he would house me... as for what Lleviathan is, he's a mighty whale of gigantic proportions and he is talked of in myths and legends. And as for the final question, my father is the one in the picture and he's the one who disappeared... the mayor is not my father, nor do I ever want to consider him as such," Jona said, my disgust plain as day as she explained her tale.

"This mayor sounds like an asshole. He's taking advantage of you so the village can get free fish! And he's doing this to you after you discover your father has gone missing?! That's repulsive!" I growled at that.

"I know... it's repulsive... but I don't have a choice... no one else in the town can house me and my father's house was his boat, which also disappeared with him... I was just lucky I was out fishing in a different boat when he went missing..." Jona said with sadness.

"Trust me, he sounds like bad news. You don't need to live with a man like this," Ina frowned at her, making Jona smile at her.

"How old are you?" Jona asked her.

"12. How old are you?" Ina smiled back.

"12... where do you come from?" Jona smiled.

"Gleeba. Same with my cousin Carl here and my sister Harley. We're traveling with Mariana and Stella the fairy to find divine fruits called Fyggs that fell from the Observatory. Do you know where we may find a fruit like that?" Ina asked.

"Yeah, I overheard that argument you had with him... anyways, I don't know where a Fygg could be... but I have a sneaking suspicion that it may have something to do with Lleviathan's sudden urge to help us... you said that fruit is divine? It may have given the monster of the deep a change of heart," Jona smiled, me looking a bit perplexed.

"That sounds like the exact opposite of what happened to Abbot Jack at the tower," Harley frowned, that immediately getting Jona's attention.

I then took out the Fygg from my bag and showed it to her. "This is the fruit that we're trying to find. There are 7 of them that fell in total. And in case you're confused, the Abbot at the Abbey ended up eating this Fygg and then went mad. When we confronted him at the top of the Tower of Trades, he turned into a monster with spears on his knuckles, demon horns, and a long tail with a stinger on it. No matter who the person is and no matter what the creature, these Fyggs are bad news unless you're a Celestrian like myself," I explained to her.

"Oh my... wait... I think I have an idea!" Jona gawked.

"What is it?" Carl smiled.

"I... I don't know why I think this, but I think that someone may have ate that Fygg while on the seas and turned into a monster resembling Lleviathan! And that person must like me because he only delivers us fish when I pray at the shores... I have a feeling that, if we try and summon Lleviathan at Cuddiedig Cliff to the west, we may be able to find that Fygg of yours if I summon Lleviathan there! It may even tell us if it knows anything about my father's whereabouts!" Jona gawked with giant sparkles in her eyes.

"Then what are we waiting for? Let's head off!" I smiled as I was about to walk out the door, but Jona stopped me before I could.

"Not now. The Mayor Bryce wouldn't like it if I headed off for the cliff without telling him first. And even then, he never lets me venture outside of the village ever since I became the supplier of fish..." Jona said with a sigh.

"Is that all? Watch me work," Carl smiled as he walked out of Jona's room and looked at the mayor in question, him looking to be eating some soup on the other side of the house... and it had fish in it. Of course. "Excuse me, mister mayor?" Carl smiled, getting his attention while his mouth was full.

"Yes what is-" he was about to say after he swallowed before Carl then chanted a spell that I smirked at.

"Sleepius Creepius!" he shouted as he waved his wand and shot the beam at the mayor, making him immediately fall into a deep slumber.

"Sleeping spell, huh? Nice," Jona smirked at that. "Let's go before he wakes up. But I'll need to borrow this from him..." Jona smirked as she stole a key off of him and we then proceeded outside and towards the gate in question. After opening it, I smiled at how Jona was ahead of us, yet she held onto Ina's hand the whole time. And upon doing so, she looked at Stella with a smile. "I'm guessing this is your fairy friend you mentioned?" she asked.

"That's me, Stella of the Starflight Express... wait..." she frowned as she gasped at Jona's nails while we proceeded forward. "Honey, your nails are all grimy and riddled with dirt! You could catch a fungus if you don't take good enough care of them! After we've dealt with Lleviathan, I'm giving you a full-on manicure, my treat," Stella smirked at her, me face palming at her antics. She really wanted to be a nail artist I guessed.


	11. Chapter 11

**Second Part of this chapter will have lemon between Stella and Mariana. You have been warned.**

* * *

 **Chapter 11**

Upon us entering the cave that led to the cliff, we saw that the place had very few monsters if at all, them including Octurians (think soldier body, octopus legs). Knocktopi, and Man o' war slimes. Also, we happened to have to walk on some rocks in order to proceed through the place, us eventually getting to the cliff and seeing that it overlooked a very deep section of water. "I'll go ahead and pray now..." Jona said. She knelt down on the side of the cliff and began to speak. "Almighty Lleviathan, please grace us with your presence... we wish to speak with you," Jona said, a small rippling happening from the edge of the cliff.

"Jona, get back!" I exclaimed, her doing just that as a giant splash of water happened and the Lleviathan sprang from the water and slammed onto the cliff itself. It was humongous! About the same size as two of Jona's house both in height and length! But then something happened we weren't prepared for. The Lleviathan slammed his face into the ground right in front of Jona, the shock wave actually making her soar into the air. And then the Lleviathan opened its mouth and trapped her inside!

"JONA! ! GGGGRRRAAAAAAGGGRRHHHHH! ! ! !" Ina exclaimed as something happened to her that I didn't expect. She then started to do a dance and started chanting things in a very angry voice. "ABANUKEM ABANUKEM MEKUNABA MEKUNABA!" she exclaimed as I saw her muscles expand greatly, it managing to make her dress stretch along with her as she happened to have her hair stand up and she looked at the Lleviathan with anger. "LET HER GO RIGHT NOW!" she exclaimed in fury as she took her whip and latched it around the Lleviathan's torso with it, tightening it and actually making the beast groan from the tightness.

"Cough her up now before I put you in a world of hurt!" Ina growled at the Lleviathan. The monster simply roared, me seeing Jona for a split second at the back of his throat before she disappeared into the beast's esophagus with a shriek! "I warned you!" Ina exclaimed as she used some kind of super strength I hadn't seen before and flailed the Lleviathan against the ground of the cliff like it was nothing! She threw him to the ground to the left of us, then to the area he had been to in the start, and finally one more time towards us before the beast groaned in pain and he opened his mouth, Jona immediately running out of the mouth and to us.

"I'm okay... just a bit wet," she said with a bit of shaking as the monstrous whale then came back to life and growled at us.

"Lleviathan! We know you're not the real one! Tell us, where is Jona's father? And do you know where a golden fruit is?!" I asked him, making the beast gasp at me.

"You know?... I feel I should show myself," the beast spoke, Jona gasping when she heard it.

"D-DADDY?" Jona gaped as she saw her father's visage appear in spirit form from the Lleviathan's face.

"Yes, it is me, my love... I feel I should explain of what happened..." he explained with a sigh. "You see, four days ago, I was fishing on the waters when the earthquake hit. It caused the waves to swallow my ship whole and I was about to drown... but then I saw a golden fruit and clung to it for life... but then color me surprised when I had turned into this mighty fish... I knew you needed some kind of clarity, so I gave your village fish whenever you went to pray by the waters... but now we can finally be together... please, come with me and we can be together," Jona's father spoke to his daughter, Jona looking conflicted.

"Daddy... I'm so glad you're okay... but I can't... I want to stay in Porth Llaffan. I want to be a fisher on my own without your assistance... but don't worry, daddy. I promise I will come here to see you every week," Jona smiled at him.

The man then smiled and looked at me and my allies. "You all care for Jona a lot, don't you?" he asked.

"Yes, we do. We'll help her get a new house, get a manicure, and we'll make sure Bryce gets promptly punished for trying to take advantage of Jona... but in exchange, we'd like to ask if we could have the Fygg? It's very important that it doesn't fall into the wrong hands from its sheer power," I said to him.

"I understand, young Celestrian... here..." Jona's dad said as he produced the Fygg from his spirit and gave it up, me picking it up and placing it in my bag along with the other Fygg. "I shall retreat back into the waters now... farewell, daughter. Until we meet again," he said as he splashed his tail and jumped back into the ocean behind him, me amazed at not only the fact that Jona still had her dad, but also Ina's surreal strength that she looked quite tuckered out after using.

"Ina, that was amazing! I had no idea you were that powerful!" I gawked at her on our way off the cliff.

"Hah... yeah... Dance of Rage... that's what I used..." she panted before she fell to the ground and started sleeping, resulting in Harley to pick her up and carry her the rest of the way back to Porth Llaffan. And when we returned we saw that the mayor was looking quite ticked at us.

"What did you lot do back there on the cliff?" he growled at us and Jona in particular.

Jona then approached him and kicked him directly in the crotch, making Bryce sing tenor as he fell to the ground from the blow. "That's for using me and my dad to take advantage of these villagers," she growled at him as she then went over to a particular boat and she smiled at it as she got to the top of the mast with ease. "Attention all people of Porth Llaffan!" she exclaimed, getting everyone to look at her at the same time. "Lleviathan is no long going to be providing for you! So please, get off your lazy asses and go fish for yourselves! I am not going to pray for him anymore and you will need to fish like you normally did!" Jona exclaimed, the citizens looking at her with confusion and some of them looking at her angrily.

Jona then got off the top of the ship and landed back on it. "Now that that's done, do you guys want to take a trip to Slurry Quay? Once we set sail, you can do my nails like agreed, Stella," Jona smiled, Stella's eyes going wide at that as we all boarded the boat she was on and she immediately told the captain where to head off. "Set sail for Slurry Quay," she smiled at the captain, who was about 13 in age.

"Yes, ma'am, Jona," he smiled with love in his eyes when he looked at her. Obvious young love. We ended up waiting for Stella for quite awhile until she had completely finished working on Jona's nails, them looking much healthier than they did before.

"Whew, that's all done now. You're quite welcome," Stella smiled at Jona while Ina held onto her hand so that Jona could see her.

"Thanks, Stella. You're quite good at this, I must admit... haven't had hands cleaner than this since I was 4," Jona smiled as I saw we were still sailing and it was still daylight. "We won't reach Slurry Quay until dusk, so I suggest you all get comfortable and have some downtime," Jona smiled.

"Downtime? Okay, I think I know what to do with that," Stella smiled as she went down below deck and I had to wonder what she was doing.

"You guys stay here," I smiled at my allies as I proceeded down to where Stella had went to and saw that she was in a bedded area and that she was taking off her clothes and looking a bit embarrassed when I saw her.

"Oh geeze! You ever heard of knocking?" she said as she covered her body.

"I guess by downtime you meant masturbating?" I asked her, making Stella a bit uncomfortable.

"It's a bit embarrassing... it's something I do whenever there's nothing else to do... that and I need to do it once a month and it's that time again..." Stella said, me smiling at her as I then took off my outfit and Stella got blush on her face.

"Would you like some help?" I smiled at her, Stella looking incredibly bashful at me.

"Me? Do it with a Celestrian?... I-I don't know... n-not that I don't hate the idea, it's just... would it make Zenus mad?" she asked.

"Us Celestrians have sex with each other in the Observatory during our downtime. So why not do it with a fairy?" I smiled.

"Not just any fairy. Remember, I'm still Zenus's daughter technically... I don't want you to lose your divine powers because of that," Stella said with concern. But then we heard a voice in our heads.

"You have my blessing. You may have sex with my sister. I allow it," I heard a voice in my head that sounded oddly familiar and serene.

"S-Sissy?... Okay... if she says so, I'll allow it... lock the door, please?" Stella smiled with bashfulness as I did just that. "Okay, now let's do it," Stella smiled as I tackled her onto the bed and began to touch her chest, making Stella a bit shocked at how I was taking initiative, even to the point of fingering her in her vagina.

"O-Oh! T-That feels so good... Ah!" she moaned from my touch as I kissed her with my tongue, our saliva mixing together as she also started to touch my body, fondling my breasts and also using her tiny hand to fist my vagina once it opened up.

"AH! That feels so awesome! Keep it up, hon!" I moaned at her fisting me as she then rattled it inside of me, only adding to my pleasure as I then began to assault her pussy with my tongue while also rubbing her tummy in the process.

"A-AHH! N-Not the tummy rub! I-I'm gonna cum!" Stella exclaimed at me, which I only continued to do so until she finally came, her juice splashing into my mouth and me slurping it up and eating it, smiling at her panting afterwards as I then flipped her over on top of me. "Now to finish you," she smiled as she then started to kiss me all over my body while fisting me some more, me panting at that and feeling tingly from her kissing until I finally came after 3 more minutes of it.

"Hah... impressive... I normally last longer than that," I smiled at her after that, Stella smirking at me.

"I've been in the game longer than you have, hon... though I'm more surprised at how you found out I was weak to tummy rubs," Stella smiled as we then cleaned ourselves up with some tissues and then put our clothes back on, us hearing a sneeze on the other side of the door. "Who's out there?" Stella groaned.

"It's uh.. Harley. I wanted to know what you were doing in there," Harley smiled.

"Not telling. Use your imagination," I smiled as I finished putting on my armor and exited the door with Stella, Harley smirking at that.

"Shame none of us others can do that. Paladins are supposed to have sex with the opposite gender, Sages are prohibited from sex, and Ina is too young," Harley smiled, making me blush as I threw a boomerang at her, knocking her upside the head when I did so. "Okay, I deserved that. I promise not to tell the others," Harley smirked as she rubbed her head.


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

After wasting time for until dusk happened, we came upon Slurry Quay and immediately started to ask around about glowing fruit after Jona left on her ship. And we eventually got an answer from one of the different traders. "Believe it or not, I just sold such a fruit to a person from the eastern slum of Dourbridge. I suggest being careful in that town. It's filled with crooks and thieves," the man said, me frowning at that.

"I've heard of that place before. Not many people that are from there are good. Also, they have inflated prices in the stores," I said with a frown.

"How would you know of that place if you were mainly an Angel Falls resident?" Harley asked me.

"Well, I visited Dourbridge roughly 30 years ago, just when I was starting my training under Aquila's former master, Corvus. He was a very nice guy and he actually confessed to me that he had accidentally fallen to the Protectorate one day and got nursed to health by a very kind woman. And 20 years ago, he disappeared when he learned of a horrible empire trying to attack the town the woman lived in. I can only imagine that Corvus got captured by the army in question, but I have no idea where he could be right now... oh I just hope he's okay..." I said with concern just as we entered Dourbridge, a person appearing in front of me that I recognized instantly. The spirit from before that asked us to save her love!

"D-Did you just say... Corvus?" she asked as she put down her hood to show that she looked incredibly beautiful with thin-strand brown hair that fell to her shoulders and having kind light brown pupils.

"Yes, I did... w-wait a minute.. are you the girl that he loved?" I asked her.

"Yes... that is I... but I can't tell you much right now... if you want to learn more, go to Wormwood... I shall await you there..." the woman said before she walked away and disappeared once more.

"She's certainly mysterious... but maybe when we meet her again, we may learn more about Corvus's past. You say he was the first Celestrian to go missing, right?" Ina asked.

"Yeah, but I don't know where he is or if he's even alive still. Celestrians may be eternally young, but in Corvus's case, he was part human and part Celestrian. As such, he was able to actually be seen by others in the Protectorate when he performed his duties," I explained.

"Wow..." Carl gawked as we then went around the slums of Dourbridge and started to question the different people of a golden fruit.

"Golden fruit? You daft, woman? None of us can afford to buy somefin like dat! You wanna talk to someone, talk to the blokes in the black market," said the man that ran the item shop. He then pointed to a door that had some iron bars on it as well as a eye hole thing in it. I knocked on the door and saw that someone was on the other side, her voice sounding just as cockney as everyone else here.

"Oi! What're you outsiders doin' 'ere?" she asked in confusion when she saw us.

"We wanted to know if anyone has recently come by here with a golden fruit? One that looks like this," I said as I presented one of my Fyggs, the girl gawking at the fruit.

"Well, I thought dat one we just sold was one o' a kind! Got a pretty penny for it an' sold it to ol' Mason just two days ago!" the girl smirked at that as I quickly put it back in my purse before anyone could see the shine of it.

"Do you know where we can find Mason? These Fyggs are actually incredibly dangerous. It caused a grown man to transform into a Lleviathan whale and another caused Abbot Jack to turn into a horrid demon," Carl asked her.

"Really? They're really that deadly?... Oh goddess, this ain't good... Mason said he was gon' use it to protect his most famous work of stone art. If you want to know what I'm talkin' 'bout, 'ead off to the summit of the Heights of Loneliness to the southeast of here. He's been MIA ever since he purchased that Fygg after all," the woman said at that.

"Understood... but before we head off, do you happen to have any kind of goods we could buy? Possibly weapons and armor?" I asked her.

"Hehe, I like you, girl. Here's a list of what we got in stock," the woman said as she provided a slip of paper from a cubbie in the door.

"Ooh... shiny... I think I'll take the Jaguarment and that Boss Shield," I smiled as I handed over a total of 52,500 gold and got the items in question.

"How... how do you have that much money?" Harley asked me.

"I... may have gotten some loot from some treasure chests in my past. Before I became Guardian of Angel falls and heck, even before I started training to be one, I was an expert treasure hunter," I smiled at them as we proceeded up to the bridge and towards the east to see some more monsters that looked pretty nasty. They included Zumeanie, Bud Brothers, Spinchillas, Bewarwolves, and some more cat sorcerers in Clawcerers.

And when we reached a more southern part, we saw a tall mountain with tons of sculptures made out of stone at the very top as well as some sculptures on the way towards the steps just to get up there. There was even an inscription on one of the statues by the base of the steps. "For my beloved Petra... though you have forsaken our marriage, I shall build you a monument to show you I still care for you... if you reach the top, you will find yourself back home again... Love always, Mason..." I said, my eyes actually tearing up at how much he cared for this woman.

"He must've been really lonely without her love... he must've built something at the top and probably used the Fygg to create something to guard it. We should be careful as we ascend," Stella said as we went up the stairs and started our trek through the mountain. But before we got into the complex itself, I stopped in place and smiled as I brought out my Jaguar dress. "Can you excuse me for a second? I need to change," I smiled at them.

"Go ahead. We'll wait for you," Stella smiled as I then went into the cave ahead of us and hid behind a rock, changing out of my armored outfit from prior and then put on my Jaguar dress, making sure to cut some holes in the back for my featherless wings.

"Okay, you guys can come in now," I said, everyone doing so and me noticing that Stella wasn't with them. "Okay, where are you Stella?" I groaned, looking around and then feeling a small bit of movement within my dress. "Ugh, get fooling around, there's a kid here," I groaned at her as I pulled her out of my bra in her smaller form and saw that she was able to shrink her original size to her small size rather than a ball of light.

"Dangit... I wanted to have some fun," Stella groaned.

"You can have fun later," I groaned at her as we then began to go up the mountain path. Upon going through the other side of the cave, we saw that we were now in a forested area with half-made statues and some full-made strewn about the place with monsters guarding the path upwards. But for some bizarre reason, none of them tried to attack us. The monsters ranged from the warm blooded Rampages, Beakons, Hocus Chimera, and Tigertaurs, to the completely material-based enemies such as the Metal Slime Knights, the Grinades, and Mad Moais. We even decided to ask one of the creatures why they weren't attacking us, that being a Tigertaur we came across in the final cave before the top-most level.

His response? "We monsters have made a pact with Mason that we won't attack any invaders. But we are also scared of going to the summit because of a terrifying creature made of stone that appeared out of nowhere two days ago. If you would be so kind, could you please go defeat this creature? Mason himself made it, so we don't want to do harm to it," the Tigertaur asked us.

"Of course, we'll help out," Harley smiled as we then went up the stairs and into an area that we saw looked amazing. The entire place was made completely out of stone... and the location in question? I recognized it immediately from my time in my training to be a Guardian.

"T-This is Zere... oh my... look at the detail here! It's amazing! Everything here is perfectly detailed just how Zere was supposed to look!" I gawked at the entire place, particularly how he made not only the citizens look like they did when they were much younger, but he also made the houses, the flower designs, the very ground, and even the giant tree all look exactly like Zere was!

"I will admit one thing. This must have been hell to make. This is the perfect anniversary present to anyone," Carl gawked at the amazing craftsmanship of the whole place until we saw one particular building to the east had an opening for us to enter into. We did so and we then saw that it was fashioned to look like the interior of a house, most likely Petra's. And we happened to see a small slime eating some herbs on a table and gasping when he saw us.

"Hey, little guy. Who are you?" Ina smiled when she noticed the Slime was a friendly.

"Goomans? You've picked a pretty bad slime to come... how did goo get in here without the beast seeing goo?" he asked in his own language.

"Beast? We didn't see anything... you mean some kind of creation that Mason made?" I asked, getting the Slime's attention when he eyed me in particular.

"I can sense it in goo, miss. You're a Slurptrian, right? Then goo must be here for the groot Master Mason oozed to create the beast... sadly, the only way to get it back is by beating it in battle, SLLURP!" he said, not really pronouncing my title right, but me forgiving it.

But then, just as he said that, we all heard a roar coming from outside. It sounded horrid, gravelly, and almost like a shriek of sorts. "H-He's here! H-Hide me!" the Slime exclaimed as he hid under the concrete table, us going out of the house to see just what this beast looked like. And upon seeing it, we gasped at how it looked. The beast in question was a gigantic, rocky gargoyle with giant wings, a massive beak of stone, and it looking quite pissed at us.

"Are... you... Mason?" it asked with a raspy voice, Ina hushing my lips as she then did another dance, me shocked at how she turned herself into an old man and looked at him with a smile and spoke... in an old guy's voice!

"I am Mason... my marvelous creation... the monsters of the mountain are afraid of you... have you been mean to them?" she asked, hoping to fool the creature I guessed. And to my surprise, it actually fooled him!

"You told me to protect this sacred place... so I am doing that..." the gargoyle said with a raspy voice.

"Well... I was not clear in my statement... I meant that I wanted you to watch over the place... and protect it from damage... people are allowed to see this place..." Ina said as Mason again, the giant gargoyle nodding his head at him.

"I understand... Master Mason..." the gargoyle said.

"But there is one thing... that I need to ask of you..." Ina said again, the beast looking at him with a smile.

"What is your question, Mason?" the gargoyle asked.

"I must ask you... to give up the Fygg within you... it belongs to this fine woman here... it is not meant for mortal hands like myself..." Ina said, the beast looking at me with a raspy breath as he sniffed me.

"I can smell it... she's a Celestrian... tell me... what is this Fygg to you?" the gargoyle asked me.

"The Fygg is very important to me, as it will allow all Celestrians to ascend to be with the Almighty Zenus... but in the hands of a mortal, the results are unpredictable and dangerous. I don't mean to be a bother, but may I please have it?" I asked the gargoyle. The gargoyle sighed again and produced the Fygg from his body, giving it to me afterwards and me seeing that, the exact moment it exited his body, he became completely incapable of movement, standing in place with his arms outstretched. "I can't believe that worked..." Ina gawked as she turned back to her normal form after doing a different dance.

"Smart thinking to use the Dance of Illusion to confuse him, sis. I wouldn't have thought of that," Harley admitted.

"Thanks, and now we've got 3 Fyggs out of 7. Now we need to get to the next area of interest, so let's look at the map again," I said as we pulled it out and looked at it.

"Okay, we're here and then the town of Bloomingdale is to the south and to the west. But after that, it looks like our travels will need to be strictly seafaring. We'll need to ask one of the people there if we can get a boat... and if I'm right, one family that is very wealthy and owns a boat but never uses it would be the Bloome family, which the town is named after. We'll need to speak with the Bloome family in order to get a boat... and maybe we can net ourselves a Fygg in the process," Carl said.

"And how do you know so much about that?" I asked him.

"Because he visited the church in Bloomingdale as part of his Sage training," Harley smirked.


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13**

Upon us reaching Bloomingdale, we saw that the place looked impressive, especially the inn, it also having a bank in it just like Stornway's inn. "According to what I'd heard, this inn has actually won 3 different Inny awards over the years. But of course, Stornway still has the most with 6 Inny rewards," Harley smiled.

"That is impressive, I'll admit," I smirked as we asked around to find out where the Bloome residence was. And the very first person we asked pointed it to us.

"You want to see Ms Bloome? She's in the mansion to the northeastern part of town. She loves visitors and loves to give out gifts to anyone," the woman smiled, that raising a small flag for me. A person of nobility giving gifts out to anyone they met? I'd get it if they were doing it for people they knew, but for anyone? I was confused, but we went our way into the mansion regardless, seeing a woman sitting on a comfy-looking couch and her looking quite cute. She had blonde hair filled with curls, a giant red ribbon in it, and she wore a very long and wide dress of red with white ruffles... but I could immediately sense something off about her. And it wasn't the fact that she was being kind to people who were obviously swindling her when we entered.

No... the thing that made me notice something off? I could sense it. She had no spirit inside of her body, much like with the gargoyle at the Heights of Loneliness! And I could also sense something divine within her... and I already had a feeling of what that thing was. "Excuse me... Ms. Bloome?" I asked, trying to get her attention.

"Oh, hello friend! Who are you? I've never seen you before," she smiled, her absolutely unaffected by the Fygg that I could sense within her.

"Well, my name is Mariana... may I ask you a question, miss? In private? Without anyone being able to listen in?" I asked her, making the girl smile at that.

"Of course. We can go in my room," she smiled as she led me into her room and she locked the door afterwards, me hearing the others getting their ears against the doors.

"Can you please not listen in? It's important matters that are not for prying ears," I groaned at them, me smiling when I heard a scuffle thanks to my allies.

"So what did you want to talk about, Mariana?... You know, that name is awfully similar to my name, Marion," the girl smiled, but I immediately got serious with her.

"I don't want to make you scared or mad or anything, but I have to ask you... why is it that I can sense a divine power within you, but yet I sense no soul?" I asked, making the girl gasp when I said this.

"Soul? What's a soul?" she asked.

"A soul is a person's spiritual self. When the body fails, the spirit moves onto the afterlife... I'm just confused about your complete absence of one... please don't get mad, and please tell me the truth... is there a glowing fruit inside of you?" I asked, the girl gasping at that.

"H-H-How did you know that? Are you friends with Marion?" she asked, her word usage confusing me.

"Um... no..?... And why are you speaking in the third person?... Please, tell me... is there something more to this story? I promise that I won't tell anyone," I said to her, wondering what in the hell this girl was.

"You pinkie swear?" she asked, holding up her pinkie finger with a smile. "I pinkie swear," I smiled as I put out my pinkie finger and connected it with hers... but the moment I touched her skin, I gasped when I felt the texture of it... her finger wasn't made of skin and bone... it was made of wood and nails!... But I let her explain. "Okay... follow me," she said as she led me to a secret door that was hidden behind a dresser and I saw she was incredibly strong, being able to move the dresser with only a single arm! We then went through and I saw we were in some kind of garden... and there was a tombstone there that I looked at... and I was stunned by the words that lay on it.

"Here lies Marion Bloome, my best friend," is what the tombstone read out.

"You see... I am not the real Marion Bloome... I'm her doll, Marionette," the girl said, my shock plain as day that she was actually telling me this. "Marion was incredibly ill... and I was created by a local toy maker to look exactly like Marion. I became her only friend in the world as she had obtained a golden fruit to try and fight an incurable disease she had... she made a wish that I would be able to live... and so, the fruit glowed brightly and entered my body... and I became alive... Marion then gave me a final wish... make friends with everyone and pretend to be her... and you're the only one that I've ever told ever since that day... it was roughly 4 days ago now... I miss her so much..." Marionette said, her making some sniffing and crying sounds, but nothing coming out of her body.

"That's a very interesting tale... but... Marionette?.." I asked her, getting her attention for a second. "Those people in the lobby? They weren't trying to be friendly to you. I believe they were trying to be nice to you just because they wanted your gifts... true friendship takes work, trust, and time to know people... Just giving gifts to anyone you see is not going to give you friends. It's going to give you greedy people who want your stuff... and by extension, Marion's stuff..." I said, making her look at me with a frown.

"Are you being truthful in your words?... I had no idea I was going about it all wrong... I didn't know..." Marionette said with a sigh and a sob. I smiled and saw that Stella had followed me and that Marionette looked amazed by her appearance when she appeared. "W-Who are you?... You look so... pretty..." Marionette smiled at her.

"My name's Stella, miss. And I think I have an idea of how everyone can have a happy ending here," Stella smiled as she reached into her pocket and presented something that I didn't expect her to have. She had a Celestrian feather on her, which I immediately sensed was mine. "I think I can have it so that I can make you still have life without the Fygg within you. But you'd need to eat this feather to do so," Stella said.

"Really?... Okay... go ahead and give it to me... I'll give you the fruit after," Marionette smiled as Stella gave the feather to her and Marionette swallowed it, me gasping when her skin started to change slightly and me seeing that she had become a full-blown mortal! "Okay... now I'll give you the fruit..." Marionette said as she placed her hand on her stomach and the Fygg appeared from her body afterwards, Marion gasping as she now had to breathe in and out.

"Oh my goddess... you've become a real human..." I gawked at her, Marionette gasping as she pinched herself and gasped at how it hurt.

"Y-You're right... humans feel pain... I-I did it! I did it!" Marionette exclaimed in joy. "Thank you friends! You're the best-est friends I've ever had in my entire life!" she smiled as she hugged us, me gagging at how she still had her super-human strength... I then looked behind her and saw a sight that made me smile. "Hey, Marionette? Look behind you while I hold onto you," I smiled at her, taking the doll-turned-human by the hand as she looked behind her and she saw a girl that looked almost identical to her. The only difference was that she had a blue ribbon in her hair and had a blue and white dress.

"M-Marion!" Marionette gasped when she saw her. "Marion! I finally made some true friends! I was able to grant your wish!" Marionette smiled as she tried to rush at the ghostly girl and gasped when her hands went right through the real Marion.

"I see this, Marionette... and you've even become a mortal... I'm so happy for you. Now I can finally be at peace... I'm going on a journey... and I think you should too... find more friends... I love you so much... my best friend... I'll visit you in your dreams, Marionette... farewell..." Marion said with tears in her eyes as she floated into the air and went to the afterlife, making Marion tear up and that making me cry a bit too.

"Tears... I can produce tears now... don't worry... I'm just... I'm so happy for her..." Marionette sobbed at that, which made me happy for her.

"I think I have an idea of how we can have that journey Marion wanted you to take... would you like it if we could take your ship and try and find the remaining 3 Fyggs? Then I'll show you the beauty of the Observatory," I smiled at her.

"You want us to go on my boat for an adventure? Why didn't you say so! Let's go tell everyone that we're going on an adventure!... But wait... I just fired all my mansion staff, so who's going to look after my house?" she asked in confusion.

"Think. Who is the most trusted person you can think of?" I smiled at her.

"Easy. That would be Randolph the toy maker!... Maybe I can ask his niece to look after the mansion... yeah, that's a good idea!" Marionette smiled.

* * *

Once we came out of the mansion, we went to the toy maker's house and met a girl that looked quite sweet and much younger than Randolph himself. "Hello, Marion. How are you doing?" the girl asked her.

"I'm hoping to go on a journey with my new best friends, but that would leave the mansion unattended. May I ask you to take care of it in my absence and make sure no one tries to break into it? And please don't give anyone my stuff?... I've learned that just giving gifts isn't friendship," Marionette smiled as she held onto my hand with a smile... and I could've sworn that I saw hearts in her eyes.

"I'm so proud of you, Marion... okay, I promise to look after your place," her friend smiled.

"Thank you, Crystal," Marionette smirked as we then proceeded to the ship in question. "So where is our first destination, friends?" Marionette smiled, me already having explained the situation to the others and them just as surprised as Stella and I were.

"Well, I think that, now that we have a boat, we should head back home. To Gleeba. I want to see how things are doing since we left on our own journey," Carl smiled as he pointed to the north of the current continent we were at, which had a kingdom in the center of a hot desert.

"Gleeba? That sounds cool! And it's in the desert, is it? Let's go!" Marionette smiled as we all boarded the ship and she got on the helm. "Okay, this ship is a bit faster than most ships of this kind, so make sure you don't fall overboard!" the doll human smiled as she got to the helm and started to steer the ship, me noticing that it had its own propulsion system in the form of the mast being a twirly kind that moved with the wind and it caused the back of the ship to move water for us to go forward.

"Whoa! We really are movin' now!" I gawked. Soon we would arrive in the most wealthy kingdom in the world, the Kingdom of Gleeba.


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14**

Once we finally reached the shores of the island (in as little as 30 minutes), we saw that it was sunrise again and we noticed we were still running without sleep. "If you want to know why you aren't feeling drowsy, it's because of my magic," Stella smiled at us, which made me smirk.

"Yeah... but what is this sound coming from my tummy?" Marionette asked, her stomach growling afterwards.

"Hunger. You're hungry. Here, I have some rations for you," Carl smiled as he produced some food that I smiled at. It was vegetables in the form of some carrots and berries, but he also had something that I smiled at. Birdsong Nectar, which was said to be super sweet and soothing to the throat.

"Ooh! Pretty birdie," Marionette smiled as she got the bottle and opened the top, confused about what to do next.

"Pour it into your mouth and swallow," I smirked at her. She followed my instruction and gasped at the taste of the nectar and swallowed, her shivering at the taste of it, which I smiled at.

"T-That tasted... heavenly... I never thought food would taste so good..." Marionette smiled with a trill. She then ate the carrot and the berries, her knowing enough to chew them up so they could fit down her throat. "Mm... the carrot tasted a bit bitter, but the berries were sweet with a hint of sour... mm... I think the nectar is the best of the three," Marionette smiled at that.

"Looks like we've got a future foodie on our team, huh?" I smiled at the others.

Marionette then tried to see if there was anything else on the bottom of the nectar bottle and threw the bottle in the distance after noticing it was completely empty. And we actually saw it fly all the way across the ocean and all the way to the continent to the south! That's how strong she was! "More like Martial Artist. Never seen a throw that powerful since I've met a Martial Artist from Batsureg. Could kill the strongest monsters with just his bare fists," Harley smirked.

"Really? I'm really that strong? Cool! Let's go into the city now," Marionette smirked as we proceeded off the boat and into the desert, seeing that there were some different monsters that roamed the place including Axolhotl, Parched Peckerels, Gold Golems, and Power Hammers, which were hammerhead sharks with giant scythes for fins. The Power Hammers and the Gold Golems were especially tricky, but they also happened to give off quite the rewards, with the Power Hammers having some good meat on them for us to pilfer and the Gold Golems dropping tons of gold when they were defeated, more so than most enemies.

We then got into the city complex itself and we were immediately greeted by someone that probably knew the three family members on my team. "Oh! Is that you Ina? And your sister Harley and brother Carl?" I heard a voice say from a local inn, which I could tell had a dancers place in it, just because of the way the girl looked. She had a similar tutu to Ina and having a very fancy hat on her.

"Master Applaudia? It's s-so good to see you!" Ina smiled at her as she began to blush again.

"It's nice to see you too, Ina. Who are your friends?... And why does one of them fly and have wings?" Applaudia asked, making Stella gasp at that.

"Y-You can see me? What the flap?" Stella gawked.

"Of course I can see you, fairy creature! Master Luminaries are naturally able to see the spiritual realm and the blessings they have to offer," Applaudia smirked, me smiling at her.

"Didn't know that a mortal could be able to do that, honestly. Normally they need some kind of help to see the spiritual realm, such as a Celestrian coming into contact with them," I smirked.

"How would you know so much about that?" she asked me.

"Because she is one. She just lost her wing feathers is all," Harley smiled, Marionette gasping when she said that.

"Y-You're... you're a Celestrian?" she asked me.

"Yes, I am?... Is there an issue?" I asked her, Marionette getting very mad at me and I had no idea why.

"You guys are the ones that took Marion away!" she growled at me, making me gasp as I then tried to explain to her.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa. Slow down here, Marionette. Celestrians are not the ones in charge of deciding when people die or live and we do not have any control of the afterlife. Besides, did you not remember what Marion said to you? She said she'd visit you in your dreams. Like, when you're asleep?" I said to her, Marionette looking at me with a sigh afterwards.

"So... Celestrians don't take away souls?... Then who does?" Marionette asked.

"No one does. Death and life are a natural cycle in this world. Some souls move onto the afterlife, some get reincarnated as someone else, some are able to stay behind if they choose and visit those of the living. I'm sure that, if she wanted to, Marion would very easily love to visit you again. I know we've come across a previous spirit who said she'd stay with her loved one after death," I smiled as I remembered Cattarhina.

"Really?... Okay... sorry for acting up..." Marionette said with a sigh.

"How about we move onto finding out if a Fygg may be here? Miss Applaudia? Do you happen to know if a glowing fruit is here somewhere?" Carl asked the woman.

"You want a golden fruit? Sadly, you may not have any luck in getting it. Queen Voluptua happened to receive one just the other day. And once she gets something, nothing will convince her to give it up. She's even diverted most of the town's water to her palace so she can have a bath after every meal. We've had to resort to boiling salt water to get a drink here," Applaudia said, me frowning and scrunching my nose in disgust.

"Queen Voluptua is at it again, huh? Ugh, sometimes I think that she just won't be happy unless she has everything in the world. She needs to have a good talking-to," Harley said, me face palming at that statement. We then proceeded to the palace and saw there were no guards in front of the palace and that the inside looked pretty elaborate. It also had tons of water in the area and all of it being diverted to a room in the very back. We also saw a maid cleaning up some dust from the stairs, which I smiled at.

"Excuse me, miss? Do you know where Queen Voluptua is at?" I asked her, getting her attention.

"The Queen? She's currently in the bath for her breakfast bath. Nothing can get her out of there until she finishes... but I do want to ask for your help, please? My name is Misslei by the way," she said.

"What do you need help with?" I asked her.

"You see, I was in charge of watching over her pet, Drak the lizard. But he ran off with her precious golden fruit! I have no idea where he is and I've searched the entire mansion! Can you help me find him? He prefers to hide in the shade," Misslei said, my worry immediately noticeable when she said 'golden fruit'.

"Let's check outside," Ina said as we went outside and we tried to look for a shaded area, seeing a slight shimmer by a palm tree and seeing some movement.

"Quick!" I said as I rushed the lizard and grabbed him just before he could take a bite of the fruit, which I immediately saw was a Fygg. "Whew... glad I caught you before you took a bite of that, little guy. This fruit may look tasty, but it's incredibly dangerous," I said to the little guy as we then went back into the mansion and Misslei gasped when I held Drak in one hand and the Fygg in the other.

"Ah! You found him! Thank goddess... now the Queen won't worry about anything..." Misslei smiled at that, just as the door opened up for the bathing room. And I could immediately tell by the beauty of the woman that it had to be Queen Voluptua. "Quick, take them and whatever you do, don't eat the fruit," I said to her, giving her Drak and the Fygg, both of them heading up the stairs and rushing to a room up there before I saw the queen come towards us with a stern frown.

"Who are you? Are you wishing for an audience with me?... And I see you have Harley with you. Have you come back as a Class 1 Paladin yet?" she asked her, Harley immediately stiffening up and shaking her head.

"N-Not yet, my Queen... I've ascended to level 3 during my adventures with my allies here, but I still have a ways to go..." Harley said with a very shy nature that I hadn't seen in her yet.

"I see. So? What was that commotion that you were having with Misslei?" she asked, me knowing that I had to come up with a lie to protect her.

"May we go to your throne room first before we explain, my Queen?" I asked her, not being afraid to look her in the eye.

"Do as you will," Voluptua spoke as we then followed her up the stairs and I saw that her throne looked remarkable. It was the most impressive throne that I had ever seen. And that was saying something, since I had already seen King Schott's thrones. "Now, what was the ruckus that you and Misslei were having?" she asked me.

"Well, you see, she lost an item that was important to her and she tasked us with finding it. I gave it back to her just as you were coming out of your bath, so she rushed upstairs so she could get back to work," I said to her, hoping she'd buy that story.

"Uh huh, sure... I heard every word of what you said even from behind the door to my bath, lying bitch. Now tell me what really happened," Voluptua said, me gasping at that as I sighed in defeat.

"Dammit... okay, fine. Misslei told us that Drak disappeared with a golden fruit and we found him underneath a palm tree outside of the palace, and he was about to eat it... and let me tell you something. If any mortal eats that golden fruit, no matter what they are, the results are never good. Here," I said as I produced all the Fyggs I had in my possession.

"Oh my... you have four of them!" she gawked.

"Yes, and almost all of them resulted in horrific things. The first Fygg was consumed by the Abbot at the Abbey and he turned into a monster with spikes on his knuckles. The second turned an innocent fisherman into a gigantic whale. The third was used to animate a giant stone gargoyle that was terrorizing the Heights of Loneliness. And the only one that wasn't dangerous in the slightest was the final Fygg. Marionette? Care to explain about your situation with it?" I asked, her nodding her head.

"You may not think it to look at me, Miss Voluptua, but I used to be a wooden doll, designed to look exactly like Marion Bloome of Bloomingdale. She made a wish on this golden fruit that I would be alive and I became aware... but she was deathly ill from sickness and asked me to pretend to be her. She died shortly after and only through my friends' help was I not only able to see Marion one last time... but I also became a mortal... and it is amazing how I'm able to do all the things a mortal can do," Marionette smiled.

"So, in a sense, to mortals, these golden fruits are incredibly dangerous and unpredictable, but to items that are not mortal, they have a differing effect?" Voluptua asked.

"Correct. But these fruits are not meant to be in this world. They fell off the Migthy Yggdrasil from my home, the Observatory," I said, Voluptua's eyebrows getting raised when I said that part.

"Observatory? You're seriously trying to say that you are a Celestrian? I see no wings on you nor do I see any halo. I'm not fooled so... easily..." Voluptua said, her words turning to shock when I turned around to show off my wings, which were still featherless. "Oh my... wings without feathers?... Are you some kind of half breed of Celestrian and mortal?" she gawked at me.

"No. I fell from the Observatory at the same time as the Fyggs, the long drop causing my feathers to fly off my body and scatter across the world. And since I don't have my wings anymore, I'm now able to be seen by everyone, yet I still have my divine powers, minus one. I am no longer able to see people's gratitude in the form of benevolessence," I explained.

"Hmm... so these fruits are important to you, you say?" Voluptua asked with a sly smile.

"Yes. And like Mariana said, in mortal hands, they are dangerous. If your pet would've ate that Fygg, I have no doubt in my mind something horrid would've happened to him. You should be thankful," Carl said to her.

"Hmph," Voluptua scoffed as she rang a bell on her throne and Misslei appeared from a room on the left with Drak in her grasp.

"You called for me to bring Prince Drak, my queen?" Misslei asked as she bowed to Voluptua.

"Yes, I did. I overheard everything that happened, Misslei... but don't worry, I'm not going to fire you. From what this group says, Drakky-woo was in real danger with that Fygg... speaking of, can you go fetch it for me, please?" Voluptua asked, me looking at her in confusion. Was she going to give the Fygg to us? Misslei then went off to fetch the Fygg for her and she looked at us while Misslei was doing her job. "Since I am a caring queen, I will give you my Fygg on one condition," Voluptua said.

"Yes? What is it?" I asked her.

"You must travel with me to the Plumbed Depths. My father's grave is buried there. You say that you're a Celestrian, yet you are able to be seen and felt by Mortal eyes and hands. I have heard tales that those in contact with those of the spiritual realm can reveal themselves if divine creature comes in contact with someone. I want to learn what my father's last wishes were... I can't remember them for the life of me," Voluptua said, petting Drak in the meantime and the lizard actually purring in its own unique way while she did so.

"Very well. But I do have to ask one more question, Queen Voluptua..." I was about to ask before Stella told me something in my ear.

"Tell her that all of these baths will be damaging to her skin. Too many a day can result in damaged skin and lead to many wrinkles later in life," Stella said.

"Actually, I think I'll let my fashionista fairy friend tell you. Would you allow me to hold your hand so you can see her?" I smiled.

"Come and touch me. You say she's a fashionista? I shall be the judge of that," Voluptua said as she motioned me over to her throne with her free hand as Misslei got the Fygg and presented it to the queen, Drak immediately trying to lunge for it, but being stopped by Voluptua.

"No! Drakky! It's too dangerous! I can't lose you, my little Drakky-woo! Don't!" Voluptua said with concern to Drak as she had to catch him by the tail and place him in a small cage to the right, Misslei gasping at that.

"My queen... you've never put Prince Drak in a cage willingly before... are you feeling well?" Misslei asked with genuine concern as she left the Fygg on the side table by Voluptua.

"If he were to eat the Fygg, something incredibly bad would happen... I don't want to lose my Drakky-woo... he's my best friend in the world..." Voluptua said as I touched her arm and Stella appeared before her, Voluptua mesmerized by Stella's looks. "Oh my... that fashion sense. Those beautiful butterfly wings... that excellent flower accessory. You are a fashionista..." Voluptua gawked at Stella.

"Yes, I know. Now, Queen Voluptua? I don't mean to be rude, but I need to share this from one fashionista to another. This thing your doing with taking a bath after every meal? It's not good in the long run. If people bathe too often and too long, their skin will become fragile and damaged, and you'll get wrinkles all over your body by the time you're 50. Trust me. I've been to enough spas in my thousands of long years to know the dangers of this kind of thing," Stella said, Voluptua gasping at that knowledge, gasping even more by the age of Stella.

"Thousands of years? But you look like you're 20 easily!" Voluptua gaped, Misslei looking on in confusion until I touched her with my other hand, her also seeing Stella.

"That's because I'm one of the Almighty's offspring. I'm the little sis of the goddess Celestria. My name's Stella, head Stewardess of the Starflight Express, lover of fashion, and nail artiste in training," Stella smiled, Voluptua smiling at the last bit as she looked at her nails and I saw that they need a small touch-up.

"You say you want to be a nail artist? Very well, I shall make you a second deal as well as the original deal," Voluptua smiled. "If you can help me see my father's spirit and let me meet with him, I shall give up the Fygg to you. And if you can make my nails the most beautiful in all of Gleeba, I will give the water back to the people and only bathe once every two days. Deal?" Voluptua smirked, Stella saying the rest.

"You're on, hon! But we'll need to wait before we can go see your father's spirit. They can only be seen at nighttime," Stella said.

"I knew there'd be a catch. Very well. Then that just means you can do my nails now rather than wait for later," Voluptua smiled.

"Heehee! You're my first royal customer, so I'm gonna make your nails into fashion icons," Stella smiled.

"I'll still need to hold onto your shoulder in order for her to do her work though, Queen Voluptua. Will that be okay?" I asked her.

"Very well. Besides, I'd love to hear more stories of your adventures that you've had, particularly with Harley and the others. When did you all meet?" Voluptua asked.

"We met in Angel Falls, which is where I happened to fall to after losing my wings. And they happened to be able to see the divine realm as well because they ate my feathers without knowing they were from a Celestrian," I smirked as we then began to tell her everything that had happened to us and all the adventures we'd had.


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15**

After Stella got to work on Voluptua's nails (both hands and feet) we were amazed at how delicate and intricate Stella worked with working on Voluptua's nails, managing to get them sparkling white and look absolutely perfect. After adding some nail polish to them, they shined even brighter, almost like diamonds! After applying the last of the nail polish (and after it dried), Stella asked one simple question to the queen. "Would you like it if I added a picture to one of your nails of your choice?" Stella smiled, Voluptua's eyes turning into hearts at that.

"You can do that? If so, please make a picture of my Drakky's face. With big cute eyes please?" Voluptua asked like a little girl. Stella then took a very small and fine brush and looked at the different colors.

"And what color would you like it?" Stella smirked.

"Since my nails are white as diamonds and sparkle as such, how about jet black?" Voluptua smiled.

"Black it is, then," Stella smirked as she then took the brush and did something we didn't expect. She turned into her extremely tiny form, the brush shrinking along with her and her then brushing much finer on Voluptua's nail with such dead-on accuracy to Drak's appearance, that it made me impressed at how good she was in terms of artistry. She had a real talent and Voluptua was actually producing happy tears when Stella finished, Drak's cute lizard face occupying Voluptua's left ring fingernail.

"It looks perfect... it's like a wedding ring on my fingernail to my best friend in the world. You are absolutely divine!" Voluptua smiled as Stella turned back to normal size and smiled as she kissed her own hand and smiled.

"Another satisfied customer!" Stella smiled with a very happy face.

"More than satisfied, miss Stella! You're an absolute goddess at nail artistry! You know, if only everyone could see you, then you could be the best damn nail artist in the entire world! You were able to do such fine detailing at that tiny size! It gives you quite the unique edge," Voluptua smiled at Stella.

"Aw shucks. You're making me blush," Stella giggled.

I then looked outside and saw that it was nearing dusk. "It's almost sunset. Once the sun goes down the whole way, the spirits of the deceased will walk the earth and will be visible. Even to us Celestrians, they won't show themselves unless the sun sets," I said with a smile.

"Then I say that we should commemorate this occasion with a meal! You can be my guests of honor," Voluptua smiled at us.

"Thank you, my queen... I am starting to feel hungry," I smiled as my stomach growled at that. "Yeah yeah, I'll feed you," I groaned at it as I smacked it.

"Heehee! Now let's go off to alert the chefs," Voluptua smiled as she rang another bell and a trio of chefs appeared, all of them looking different, and all of them being males.

"Yes, Queen Voluptua? What would you like for dinner?" the chef with the biggest hat asked.

"I want you to prepare a feast for me and my new friends. All of the staff will also be able to eat this feast. My treat," Voluptua said, the chefs and Misslei all gasping and smiling at that.

"T-Thank you, my queen! We shall prepare the feast right away!" the head chef said with giddiness as I saw that Drak was calm now and that he wasn't even looking at the Fygg anymore.

"I think that Drak is calmed down now, Queen Voluptua... also, if you don't mind, I think I may be able to communicate to him," Ina said with a smile.

"How can you do so?" Voluptua asked.

"I'm a Luminary in training and, believe it or not, the very first spell I learned how to use was Transform. If I turn into an animal, I can communicate with Drak to see why he wanted to eat that Fygg so badly," Ina smiled.

"How interesting. Very well, I shall let him out of his cage... but I shall hide the Fygg in my bra out of safety... it doesn't go through skin, does it?" Voluptua asked.

"No, not unless you take a bite out of it. Marion was only able to have the Fygg enter my body because she took a small nibble of it," Marionette explained as Ina then started to chant the nearly impossible chant in order to cast the hardest move to master, Transform.

Ina then turned herself into, get this, a rabbit! I then picked up her shrunken body (her having shrunk out of her clothes in the process) and Voluptua let Drak out of his cage and onto the table, which is where I placed Ina. "Hello, Drak. Can you understand me?" Ina asked, Drak then starting to speak his own tongue and Ina nodding.

"Uh huh, I can understand you. Tell me, why did you want to eat the Fygg so badly? It's extremely dangerous," Ina said, Drak then starting to speak again and for a longer amount of time before finally stopping. "He said that he wanted to eat the Fygg so he could become a human so he could marry you, Queen Voluptua. He thought that you were being mistreated by the staff so he wanted to eat the Fygg so he could take care of you by himself... but after Stella gave you that manicure and after you opened up... and after you said to have his face on your fingernail, he realized that you loved him much more than he loved you. And he didn't know that these Fyggs were really that dangerous. Just that it was a heavenly fruit and he thought he could become a human if he wished to be so," Ina said, Voluptua's eyes erupting into tears as she picked up Drak and hugged him gently against her bosom.

"I love you too, my Drakky-woo... But please, don't judge my staff. Even though they mess up at times, they are all reliable and I wouldn't ask for better staff... but no one can replace you, my Drakky... my prince... my love..." Voluptua smiled as she kissed Drak, me a bit weirded out.

"Um... Is it legal to marry animals in the Protectorate?" I asked, not really knowledgeable on that front. I knew that Polygamy and same-sex relations were legal across the Protectorate with slight rules for each place (such as Stornway making it so that same-sex couples couldn't have children) but I didn't know if marrying animals had any laws.

"Believe it or not, so long as the animal is able to live as long as the human, the answer is yes... I think that, after you leave, I will have a wedding for me and my Drakky-woo. I thank you so much, my friends... oh my goddess... I just remembered my father's wishes!" Voluptua gasped as she produced some tears as she started to recite his words. "Always remember that you are never alone. Even though I may pass, the citizens of this nation and the castle staff love you more than anything. And remember, sharing is caring..." she said, her collapsing afterwards and sobbing at that.

"M-My Queen! Are you alright?" Misslei asked as she went to Queen Voluptua and helped her up.

"I-I just... need a few minutes... I've never known true happiness... for so long... but meeting you all... and learning of Drakky's true feelings for me... I... I'M SO HAPPY! UHHAAAA! ! !" Queen Voluptua actually bawled as she collapsed on the ground and I noticed the sun had set. And a spirit had appeared directly behind Voluptua that I smiled at.

"Voluptua? Someone's behind you that I think you'd like to meet... but I need you to hold my hand," I smiled at her, Voluptua sniffing and doing that, her tears coming out even more when she recognized the man.

"D-Daddy!" Voluptua cried at her father. "I remember, daddy... I remember what you told me... I've been so foolish for so long! I've tried to surround myself with wealth, but all it did was make me a snob and unhappy!... I'm so sorry!" Voluptua cried as she collapsed on the ground while I held her hand, causing me to bend over while Misslei looked on with a smile and tears in her eyes... I also noticed that Ina had turned back into her human state and joined up with my friends behind me in the process.

"My daughter... I'm so proud of you... you finally know how to live your life... I can finally be at peace," the man smiled as his body then started to float in the sky and started to glow brightly.

"I-Is it time?... For you to go?... N-No..." Voluptua blubbered yet again.

"Do not distress, my daughter. I will always be there to look over you, even though you cannot see me..." Voluptua's dad smiled as he then disappeared in a bright light, Voluptua smiling and sniffling in a large booger in the process.

"I'm so happy..." Voluptua sniffed as she then looked at her bells she had on her desk and simply picked them up, one by one, and threw them down into the fountain on the lower level, Misslei smiling at that too.

"My Queen..." Misslei smiled.

"Please, Misslei... call me, Val..." Voluptua smiled, Misslei gasping and collapsing into tears as Voluptua opened her arms and Misslei ran to her and they shared a heartfelt hug.

"I'm so happy for you, Voluptua..." I smiled at her, Voluptua reaching into her bra and then giving me the Fygg.

"Here. I don't need this Fygg anymore. Not after I finally have happiness," Voluptua smiled as Drak jumped to Voluptua and snuggled himself in between her cleavage. "I love you too, Drakky... after our friends leave, we shall be husband and wife," Voluptua smiled at him. "Please, stay for the feast. My chefs will make the best food you've ever tasted. And afterwards, why not sleep in my guest chambers?" Voluptua smiled at us.

"How could we pass up that opportunity?" Carl smiled.

"Yay! I wonder how good the food here will taste!" Marionette smiled widely.


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter 16**

The feast that Voluptua had prepared had to be eaten in three different rooms because of how many people she had in her palace and everyone was smiling and having the time of their lives at how kind the queen had turned into after we had turned her life around. The food was fantastic and was quite varied, all of us loving every piece of it. But none so more than Marionette, who was in love with all the food that touched her tongue, her especially loving that they had birdsong nectar as well, which I could tell was her favorite food of the bunch.

"Mm... Heavenly... sleepy.." Marionette smiled after she finished eating all of the food, actually falling asleep afterwards, her falling on the ground with her eyes closed.

"She looks so cute when she's sleeping," I smiled as I picked her up with Harley's help as Voluptua led us to the sleeping chambers for the guests, me smiling at how there were enough beds for all of us, minus Stella.

"I'll just sleep in your bra," Stella smiled as she turned tiny and went into my shirt, me smiling at her in the process. The room in question was quite impressive with the beds all being quite large and intricate, even the different antiques looking quite nice on the walls.

"Goodnight everyone," I smiled as I pulled the covers over my body and sighed at the softness of the bed.

"Goodnight," they all said minus Marionette, who cooed in her sleep. I then closed my eyes and, after waiting for a few minutes, I entered my dream world, which I was able to visit on a whim whenever I felt like it... and whenever I fell asleep, I was able to see the entire Protectorate, as a Celestrian would be able to.

"Okay... where are the last two Fyggs? They've got to be somewhere in this place," I said as I visited all the different areas across the world from the Wormwood areas to the west to the far northeast of the dead isles, and then to the far east and I immediately caught wind of the two remaining Fyggs! "Aha! One is in the plains here and the other is in the snowy areas! Great!" I smirked as I then noticed something in the distance, me seeing that it came from the far north in the dead isles. It was... a gigantic dragon covered in dark purple and black scales! I didn't need to know what it was because I knew what it was and who it was affiliated with. "Barbarus... that can only mean one thing... Gittingham Empire... has risen from the dead... what holy hell are we in for?" I asked in shock and fear.

I wasn't normally afraid of anything, but even the mightiest Celestrians feared the Gittingham Empire. It was a very ruthless and merciless army of monsters and cultists that were mainly the source of tons of destruction roughly 25 years ago, which was the same time that Corvus had went missing. Their reign of terror was put to an end by a large group of Celestrians doing battle with them alongside human companions, but Corvus was still missing. And the Gittingham Empire had the ruthless dragon Barbarus on their side, who could only be defeated by Greygnarl, a giant dragon with good in his heart and of very old age.. but then again, so was Barbarus at that time... this Barbarus? He looked incredibly young! And everyone knew that younger dragons were much more dangerous than old and aging dragons.

"It is really a dangerous thing, isn't it?" I heard a voice from behind me that I gasped at.

"M-Master Aquila?..." I gawked as I turned around and saw him, him sighing at me.

"I see you lost your wings, Mariana... I feel deeply sorry for you," Aquila sighed, me producing tears at the sight of him.

"Where are you? And... why did you vanish with the others?" I asked him with tears in my eyes.

"I got sidetracked while looking for you, as you clearly just saw... I'm trying to play a double agent right now. Apus Major understands the issue with the Gittingham Empire and tasked me with stopping their plans to find the Fyggs. That's why I need to tell you of my plan," Aquila said, me listening intently to it as I nodded my head. "Once you have gathered all the Fyggs, I shall accompany one of their lieutenants, Hootingham Gore, along with Barbarus. You will stage a fight with me and you will get knocked out. I'll then take the Fyggs and then disperse while Hootingham Gore heads to the southern portion of the Western Continent. I'll deliver them to Apus Major and then I shall join you in the fight to take out the rest of the Gittish Empire," Aquila said to me, me smirking at his elaborate plan.

"You're plan is genius, Aquila! No wonder you were able to become the guardian of Angel Falls before me in only 3 days!" I gawked at him.

"Yes, but I want to let you know of something else. The monsters you will face in the future, even on the continent that has the Fyggs, will be tougher and tougher. Get stronger, and have some allies help you out. The Gittish Empire is not to be trifled with, even if they are of lesser power than prior, minus Barbarus," Aquila said. I nodded at this.

"I'm so relieved to hear that you're safe, Master... I was so worried..." I smiled as I touched him and saw it was just a visage. He had that ability. To meld our minds from afar.

"And I'm relieved to hear that you're safe, Mariana... until we meet again..." Aquila smiled as he warped away and I felt my dream leave me. I then woke up to Stella dancing on my nose, which I immediately flicked her off and got up on my own.

"Oi! Watch where you flick me, girl! You'll ruin your nails!" Stella groaned at me.

"What do you expect to happen? You woke me up by dancing on my nose. Of course I'm going to flick you off," I smirked at her. I then saw that everyone else was up and getting their things together. "Hey, guys?" I said, getting their attention. "You may not know this, but I just had a dream and, whenever a Celestrian dreams, they are able to see all of the Protectorate at once. And now I know that the final two Fyggs will be in some plains in a continent to the north of us and in a snowy area on the far northeastern side of the same continent," I said to them.

"I think I know the areas you're talking about. The plains area is sure to be the Iluugazar Plains, where strength and survival are the main ways of life and the citizens live by hunting. And the snowy area may be Snowberia, which holds a vocational academy we all went to when we wanted to do our different ways of life. I have a feeling that the Fyggs will be in that academy and in Batsureg, a village in Iluugazar Plains," Carl smiled at me.

"We're going for a hunting trip? I hope that the animals are okay..." Marionette said, me smirking at her usual denseness and obliviousness to the world.

"I say that we get me and Marionette some weapons and armor from the shops here before we head off back to the boat," I smiled.

"New clothes? I can finally get some new clothes? Cool! I've been wearing this dress ever since I've been created," Marionette smirked, me seeing that the dress was actually real fabric instead of wood.

"Okay, let's head off then," Harley smiled as we then bid our farewell to Voluptua (who insisted we also called her Val) and headed on our way to the armor shop, where Marionette got a Summer Dress, which she loved at how she could move in it. I also gave her the bottom portion of my old Celestrian armor and she was all smiles at how it felt on her. Afterwards, we headed off for the weapon shop and I immediately chose the Bandit Blade while Marionette chose to opt for claws as her weapon choice, getting her choice in the Handrills, which looked very deadly both in appearance and by title.

"Haha! I look like a bear with these claws!" Marionette smiled at her appearance.

"In terms of hands, yes. But the rest of you screams adorable girl," Stella smirked at her.

"Alright, now time to head off to the continent to the north. But we also need to be careful of something else that I'll explain on the way there," I warned my friends.

"What do we need to be careful of? We're a solid group!" Ina smirked with an unusual bit of confidence, which I immediately brought her down to reality.

"In my dream, I saw a sight that made me shiver in fear. Barbarus was flying around the dead isles, which is the last known remnants of the Gittish Empire. And then Master Aquila appeared in my dream and confirmed my fears. The Gittish Empire has been resurrected and they've already resurrected Barbarus the Dark Dragon," I said, my words making the others shake in shock minus Marionette and Ina.

"B-B-Barbarus?" Harley stuttered.

"A-And the Gittish Empire? Impossible! They can't be back! They were burned to ashes over 20 years ago by Greygnarl!" Carl gawked as Stella just looked dumbfounded.

"Well, according to Aquila, the only real threat among them is Barbarus himself, as he has been resurrected to be much younger in terms of dragon age. But the other members of the empire are not at their full power... I have to wonder how they managed to be resurrected, however... was it because of the earthquake?... No, that'd be impossible... I have a sneaking suspicion here, but what if the earthquake wasn't the cause of the earth? But it was the cause of someone that wanted all of this chaos to happen? And that same person resurrected the House of Gitt?" I gawked.

"That is entirely possible... but who would have that much black magic to resurrect those blokes from the dead, cause a massive earthquake to sound out throughout the entire Protectorate, AND cause dark pillars of light to assault the Observatory all at the same time?" Stella asked.

"I have no idea, but for some reason, I think it may have something to do with Corvus... but we're getting ahead of ourselves. For now, we need to go get those last two Fyggs," Ina said, me frowning at that. I had to hope that she wasn't right... I didn't want Corvus to be involved in all this chaos, but I had a feeling she was right... and I hated it.


	17. Chapter 17

**Chapter 17**

Once our group got out to the ship, we then proceeded to the northeast and towards the area that held the Iluugazar Plains, us disembarking and seeing that the monsters here were pretty tough, them including the Crabber Dabber Doo (actual name, honest!), Treevil, Ghouls, and Wyrtles (giant dragons in turtle shells). And when we finally reached the plains themselves, the monsters there were tough too, including the Swinoceros, Battering Rams, Rockbombs, and Brainy Badboons. We continued going through the plains until we eventually reached a town in the middle of it all, which the others informed me was Batsureg, the nomadic tribe of hunters that valued strength and survival above everything else.

And when we arrived, we saw that something shocking was happening. A Badboon had showed up in the town center and everyone looked to be cheering on a young hunter that looked to be very scared and concerned. "Kill him! Kill the monster! Come on, Batzorig! Do it!" exclaimed a very burly man from above a hill, him being next to a woman that had a cloth covering her mouth and having a very racy attire. She looked... sexy... but I could sense something off about her. I couldn't quite place it, but it seemed like she was trying to hide something. What that could be, I had no clue.

My attention was then back in the town as the Badboon simply ran off and out into the Iluugazar Plains in a single leap over our team, me gasping at how agile he was despite how big he was! "BAH! Batzorig! He was right there! You'll never become the chief hunter if you can't kill anything!" the burly man atop the cliff said as Batzorig sighed and hung his head in shame.

Stella frowned at this as Carl explained. "This must've been one of their tests for the youth to become hunters... but it looks like this lad failed it... which is odd, because he looks a tad bit older than most that go through this trial... normally they have the children as young as 8 start their hunting careers, and this kid looks at least 14 easy," Carl frowned as the lad named Batzorig then timidly went back to the duo atop the hill and I couldn't help but feel the need to follow after. When we caught up to them and entered the biggest tent in the village, we saw the burly guy lecturing the young hunter in training.

"Batzorig, how do you expect to be a hunter if you can't harm a Batterfly? You need to toughen up. Enough is enough! I can't have you soiling my reputation by being an incompetent hunter... I think it's time that I sent you to the Hunter's Yurts. Maybe then you'll learn the ruthlessness of the hunt," the burly guy said, Batzorig gasping at that.

"P-Please father... please reconsider!" Batzorig said with concern.

"Enough foolishness!" the burly guy growled as he clapped his hands and two different guards came in and grabbed the teenager by the arms.

"Ack!" he gawked as he then was led out of the tent and past us.

"Huh? Visitors? We have some visitors, Batkhann," the woman said, her voice sounding a bit sexy to match her... but also having a small bit of a raspy nature to it.

"Of course. Come, visitors!" the burly man said, us approaching him cautiously. "Where do you come from and what are your occupations?" the man asked us.

"I'm Mariana, and... I'm a Minstrel," I said, using the class I chose as a Celestrian instead of saying Celestrian outright... not in front of this strange woman. I felt danger about her.

"I-I'm Ina... L-Luminary in training," Ina said, her being more shy around strangers.

"Harley, Class 3 Paladin," Harley smiled as she did a knight's salute.

"Marionette, Martial Artist of Bloomingdale," Marionette smiled.

"Carl, Sage of Gleeba. And all of us minus Mariana and Marionette come from Gleeba. Mariana comes from... Angel Falls," Carl said, the man's eyebrow raising when he said 'Angel Falls'.

"We don't get too many people here from that far away of a town! Must've taken quite a lot of work to reach this area, hmm?" Batkhann asked.

"You have no idea," I smiled, not really wanting to go into all the stuff I've had to go through just to reach this continent.

"Well, my name is Batkhann, and I am the chief hunter of Batsureg. And this is my new assistant since 5 days ago, Sarantsatsral," Batkhann said, me dumbfounded at that name in particular.

"Um... Sarantsar... Ugh. Sarantas... Sarantasastral?" I said, the name being a bit of a tongue twister for me.

"Is it that hard for you to say my name?... I honestly don't blame you. It took dear Batkhann nearly 3 days of practice to say it without fail," Sarantsatsral said with a smile, me only then noticing something about her that I knew was off. I could smell it. The scent of a monster.

"Um... Sarantastals... ugh... can we possibly talk in private? Me and you?" I asked her.

"Very well. Please excuse me, dear Batkhann," Sarantsatsral said with a smile as she got up and I followed her, my allies staying behind to talk to Batkhann in the process.

When we were out of earshot, I then looked around and saw that everyone was in their huts or out hunting. "Okay, Sarantasass... oogh... anyways, I know something is up about you. I can smell it on you. The scent of a monster. Tell me, what are you doing and why do you have the appearance of a human, yet the scent of a monster?" I asked her, wondering what her reaction would be.

"Y-You know?! I-I beg of you not to tell anyone... please..." Sarantsatsral said as she held her hand to my face, her gasping as she then saw Stella, her gasping once more when Stella disappeared the moment she took her hand off my lips.

"Y-Y-You're... one of them..." she gawked.

"Yes, I am... please, tell me what's going on? With honesty? I promise I won't tell anyone if you tell me the truth," I said to her, wondering if she'd listen to me.

"O-Okay... but not here, please? I don't want to be heard," she said.

"Very well. Touch my hand and I'll take us to a different location with Zoom," I smiled at her, the woman doing just that as Stella also touched my hand, both of us rushing into the sky as I had us warp to a location we'd been to in the past. The ruins of Brigadoom. "There are no humans in this area, so you're safe to tell me," I said to her with a smile.

"O-Okay... the truth is, I'm not this beautiful human lady... I'm... well... I'm this..." Sarantsatral sighed as she let her disguise down and she revealed her true form, me gawking at the sudden transformation as she turned into a gigantic blob of pink with giant teeth and eyes, her hair being crazy on her head, and her holding a giant staff in her hand.

"Whoa... did not expect that..." I gawked at her as she then turned back into her fake, human form.

"You see, I was a lonely Slugger that lived in the Iluugazar Plains and I desperately wanted to become a human so that I could be as beautiful as they are and so I wouldn't be lonely anymore... so, I found a strange fruit that fell from the skies above that glowed with the radiance of the sun and ate it, making a wish that I would be beautiful... it morphed my Slugger form into that ugly piece of bulbous flesh, but gave me the ability to change my form to a beautiful woman... now I'm no longer lonely and I can finally be beautiful..." Sarantsatsral explained, me gawking at her story.

"Wow... I didn't expect that your story would be like that... but we have a slight issue here..." I sighed at her.

"What is it?" she asked.

"You see, that fruit you ate wasn't just any fruit. It was a Fygg, a fruit that is dangerous to mortals, but the keys to the Celestrian's salvation. They are incredibly dangerous if used incorrectly and I think that it gave you that giant form as a side effect to the wish," I sighed at her.

"B-But... I can't give this fruit up... I'm so lonely and ugly without it!" she said.

"Well, what if I were to help you out?" I asked, getting a small idea in my head.

"Help... me out?... You're not going to slaughter me?.. I-I don't understand..." she gawked.

"I'm not a ruthless killer, Sarant-" I was about to say before she stopped me.

"That's not even my real name... it's just my real name backwards. My real name is Larstastnaras..." she frowned, that one being a bit easier for me to pronounce.

"Larstastnaras... I'm not going to kill any monsters that I see. I only attack monsters if they attack me first. Besides, I know of a place that you'll be beloved by all of your fellow monster friends and most of them being Sluggers themselves," I smiled, that getting her attention.

"Y-You don't mean... You're talking about Coffinwell, aren't you?" she asked. I nodded at this and Larstastnaras looked troubled.

"W-What will they think of me when they see my ugliness?... I.. I'm not sure..." she said with concern.

"I can almost guarantee you that, if you give me the Fygg, I can prove to you that the Sluggers of Coffinwell will think you are quite pretty and they will love you," I smiled.

"R-Really?... If you think it will work, okay... but if it doesn't, I want that Fygg back," Larstastnaras said to me.

"Understood... do you mind?" I asked, me holding my hand to hers as Stella stood on my head.

"Take me to Coffinwell. I'll give you the Fygg momentarily afterwards to see if your plan works," she said. I then warped us to the area of Coffinwell and I led us to an area away from the town itself, us seeing that there was a whole group of them by a corn field. "Okay... here..." she sighed as she produced the Fygg from her body and turned back to her small Slugger self, me taking the Fygg in hand as she then took a deep breath in and walked over to the other Sluggers, me looking overhead to see what happened.

"Huh? Hubba hubba! Who are you?" one of the Sluggers asked, him having a male voice.

"M-My name is Larstastnaras... d-do you really think I'm pretty?" she asked with a blush of pink.

"You're amazing! I've never seen a Slugger like you in my life! You look gorgeous," another Slugger said, her having a female voice.

"I... t-thank you..." Larstastnaras smiled at them. After they conversed some more, the Slugger girl then came back to me and I smiled at her smile. "They like me! They said I was gorgeous! I... I'm so happy! I thank you, Mariana of Angel Falls! I've never known this happiness in my life!" Larstastnaras smiled at me.

"You're welcome," I smiled at her, me still holding the Fygg in hand.

"You can keep that Fygg. All I ask in return is that you tell Batkhann of my true identity... and tell him to be kinder to his son? His son has made friends with that Badboon and that's the reason he doesn't want to kill it. Truthfully, Batzorig has killed monsters before, he just doesn't like doing so unless there's a reason for it. He just refuses to kill that Badboon, which his father says is the final test of his training... please, tell Batkhann to give Batzorig a different type of creature to kill?" Larstastnaras asked me.

"I shall do that. And thank you for your cooperation, Lara," I smiled, getting her to smile at that.

"Lara... I like that. Has a nice ring to it," she smirked as she then went off to go with her Slugger companions and Stella smiled at me.

"Nice work there, Mariana! Not only do you get a Fygg, you also managed to make a Slugger extremely happy. I've never seen one of them that happy in my life," Stella smirked.

"You mean you've seen them before?" I asked her, making Stella a bit shocked, which raised a red flag for me.

"Uh... no, n-n-n-no... I uh... I meant to say uh... oh flap..." Stella groaned. "Okay, look I'll tell you everything, but only when we get a chance to sleep. I'll give you a duo of visions that you need to see," Stella explained. "A duo of visions? Sounds intense," I said. "You'll stay asleep as long as I tell you to," Stella smiled at me as I took her hand and I Zoomed us over to Batsureg, us actually falling right on top of my allies in the process.

"Ack! Hey! Where the heck did you two go off to? And where is Sarant... uh.. w-where is face cloth woman?" Ina asked, me smiling at how she couldn't say it either.

"We just got this from her," I smiled as I showed off Fygg number 6.

"Oh my word! You've gotta be kidding me! It was that easy?" Marionette gawked.

"Apparently she was actually a Slugger and she made a wish on this Fygg that she would be able to look gorgeous and not be lonely anymore. So in exchange for helping her see that she was the prettiest Slugger ever without the Fygg, I got the Fygg and she asked me to deliver a message to Batkhann," I smiled.

"How did you show her she was the prettiest Slugger of all?" Carl asked.

"Simple. I warped us over to Coffinwell's region and the Sluggers in the corn fields actually thought that she looked drop-dead gorgeous for a Slugger. Now she's no longer lonely, she feels beautiful, and we have a Fygg and a message for the chief hunter... speaking of, where were you going off to anyways?" I asked my allies.

"We were going to the Hunter's Yurts because Batkhann wanted us to give Batzorig some hunting experience," Harley said.

"Well, then here's what you're going to do," I said with a smile. "You'll need to tell Batzorig to get his Badboon friend to safety and then I'll go and talk to the chief hunter to see what he has to say," I said with a smile.

"Understood. We won't question your logic," Carl said as he and the others went off to the Yurts and I proceeded into Batsureg in search of Batkhann.


	18. Chapter 18

**Chapter 18**

"You're not joshing me?... Hold it, let me see if I got all this," Batkhann said as I finished sharing with him what happened with Sarantsatsral. "So Sarantsatsral was actually a Slugger and she was able to turn into that human form after eating this special golden fruit that you call a Fygg... she gave it to you after she learned that she did look beautiful to Sluggers from Coffinwell and her message to me was to tell you what she really was as well as possibly give my son a different type of trial to do instead of killing that particular Badboon? Because my son is actually friends with it?" Batkhann asked.

"Yes, that's the story. I don't blame you if you don't believe me, but I'm being truthful with my words," I spoke.

"Well... this is surely a lot to grasp... but at least it explains why Batzorig is so unwilling to do the final trial. If he's friends with that particular Badboon, I can see why he wouldn't want to kill it. He's always had a soft spot for the monsters and refuses to kill anything without a good reason... maybe... Ah! I have a much better idea!" Batkhann said with a smile.

"What's your plan?" I asked with a smile.

"There is a special type of grass that grows only in the ruins of Gerzuun to the north, past Mount Ulbaruun. It's called Bodura Grass and it is so rare that it is able to be sold for a hefty price, but also being a great tool for us hunters when we get faced with the rare Scarlet Fever monster that can pop up rarely in this area. It's extremely dangerous and, without Bodura Grass, it's impossible to lower its defenses. If you can help him go there and fetch the Bodura Grass, I will let that be his final test. But only if he joins you in attacking all the monsters in the process," Batkhann said to me, me smirking at that.

"Sounds like a fair trial. Shall I depart to go find him? You said he was at the Hunter's Yurts, correct?" I asked.

"Yes, he is. Do this for me, and I will let you stay the night with us and we can give you a special brew to give you heightened senses. It's a necessity to have this brew if you want to defeat the monsters on the Snowberian Coast and the monsters of the Wyrm continent," Batkhann smiled.

"That sounds great! I'll go right away," I smiled as I then left his tent and proceeded out of town and towards the Hunter's Yurts, seeing Batkhann at the front gates with my allies already, me getting their attention from afar with a stone throw. "Hey! I got news for you guys!" I exclaimed as I rushed over to them and they closed the distance as well.

"Did you just have a meeting with my father?" Batzorig asked, him smiling gently.

"Yes, and believe it or not, I convinced him to give you a different type of test to become the chief of the village. He wants you to travel with us to Gerzuun to look for some Bodura Grass. The only condition is that, if we encounter any monsters, you need to assist us in defeating them. Does that sound fair?" I smirked at him.

"That sounds like a dream come true! I thank you, friend! Let's get going! If it's just any other monster, I can deal with them. But I could never hurt Koombesh.. I'm so relieved that he's safe from the test I had to do..." Batzorig smiled.

"Is that your Badboon's name?" Marionette smiled.

"Yes, it is. By the way, I didn't expect that your group would be consisted of so many diverse talents. A Sage, a Martial Artist from Bloomingdale of all places, a Celestrian, a fairy, a Luminary, and a Paladin? That's quite a lot of people to travel with," Batzorig admitted, Stella looking a bit confused at that.

"You're able to see me?" she asked.

"Yes, I can. Anyone who's had our special hunter's senses brew is able to see the spiritual realm as well as have heightened senses and reflexes in battle," Batzorig smiled.

"Yeah... speaking of which, Stella, I have a particular question I've been meaning to ask you," I said to her, Stella stiffening up at that. "How were you able to have some of my feathers and give one to Marionette to make her mortal?" I asked her, Stella breathing a sigh at that.

"Okay... I found a few of your feathers by the Starflight Express and kept hold of them in case of emergencies... sorry for not telling you, Mariana. I just worried that, if you ate one, you'd become invisible to the mortals once again. And considering we need you to be able to be seen by the mortals for our adventures, yeah..." Stella said with a sigh.

"I see. Well, thanks for getting them before someone else could, Stella. How many do you have?" I asked her.

"I have 5 more on my person and we know that Marionette had one and your allies had a few. But I have no clue where the other feathers are or if there even are any," Stella admitted.

"Can you possibly show me what these feathers look like? Because I remember that my brew in particular had a feather in it," Batzorig smiled. Stella then produced one of the feathers, which she was keeping in her bra, her showing it and Batzorig gasping at it. "It was a feather just like this!... But... the feather in my brew wasn't the same power as this. Mine had a much powerful aura in it and it had a slight few bits of black in it," Batzorig said, me gasping when he said that last bit.

"Corvus... he's the only Celestrian that has black bits in his feathers due to him being part mortal! When did you have your brew and where was that feather found?" I asked him.

"My father found the feather and I had my brew roughly five years ago. If you want to know where the feather was found, I'd ask him instead," Batzorig smiled as we came upon Mount Ulbaruun and I picked up the stench of poisoned water. "If we want to go to Gerzuun, we'll need to venture through the poison marsh to the east," Batzorig said.

"I think I could make our job easier by casting Safe Protection. We'll be able to traverse the poisoned water without fear of being infected," Harley smiled as she chanted the spell and all of us had a small aura of yellow around us, Stella included.

"Thanks, Harley. Now let's go find that grass," Ina smiled as we proceeded through the marsh and then down some stairs, us seeing we were now in a tunnel that led us to a large chasm area with worn out huts and monsters all around.

"Wow! This place looks so cool!" Marionette gawked happily as we moved through the place, us having to defeat some monsters in the form of Ghouls, Medislimes, Cheeky Tikis, Deadcurions, and Infernal Armor, all of them being tough customers and Batzorig attacking all of them along with our group. And once we got to the area that Batzorig said the Bodura Grass was, we came across an enemy in front of us that I knew was bad news just from the size of it.

"Der... HEY! Whaddaya doin' in me den?" asked a gigantic Troll with a gigantic oaken club that looked to be made out of an entire tree!

"Your den? This is Gerzuun and it is the remnants of a great hunting village! You and your other monster ilk are defiling their graves! Leave now, or face the end of my axe!" Batzorig said as he held his weapon tightly. "HAHA! Dat puny little stick? Hurt me? HAHA! You'll make a tasty treat, little boy!" the Troll smiled as he then tried to grab Batzorig with his meaty paws, the result being a lot of pain on the Troll's part when Batzorig actually sliced off the Troll's entire hand! "GGAAAH! YOU BASTARD!" the Troll exclaimed as he then tried to squish Batzorig with his club, but Harley blocked it with her shield, giving Batzorig the opportunity to attack the Troll, him slicing across the monster's stomach and causing its insides to pour out.

"Threat nullified," Harley smirked as Batzorig smirked happily.

"Troll meat is good meat. We can take this back with us as well as the Bodura Grass," Batzorig smiled at that.

"I'll help lift the meat," Harley smiled.

"Me as well," Carl smirked.

"Um... I think I'll sit out on this one. That meat doesn't look too clean," Marionette smiled.

"Okay. Everyone but Harley and Carl? Move out to the Bodura Grass," Stella smirked, our group then going down the stairs that the Troll guarded and we saw a room that had a ton of humidity and it actually feeling a bit hot.

"There it is," Batzorig said as he picked a chunk of bright red grass, it actually feeling hot to the touch. "This grass is able to cure many diseases and it can also weaken our worst opponent, the Scarlet Fever, so we can attack it. Without this grass, the Scarlet Fever would be able to infect our entire village within a week," Batzorig explained.

"Sounds an awful lot like the Ragin' Contagion' that we faced in the Quarantomb," Ina said.

"I've heard of that thing, believe it or not. It's impossible to kill, but it can be sealed. And it only affects citizens of Coffinwell. The Scarlet Fever, however, is able to be killed when exposed to Bodura Grass and it can gain access to this entire continent, but not overseas. If it went anywhere overseas, it would dissipate into dust, since the Scarlet Fever is just a sentient bunch of fiery gas," Batzorig explained as I then cast Evac and I then cast Zoom back to Batsureg, all of us entering the town and everyone looking at us with a smile.

We then saw Batkhann atop the hill as before and he looked at Batzorig with a smile. "Batzorig? Did you complete the trial?" Batkhann asked.

"Yes, I have. I bring not only Bodura Grass, but also twenty pounds of Troll Meat," Batzorig smiled as my allies presented the meat in question.

"Congratulations, Batzorig! You are now qualified to be the next in line of Chief Hunter!" Batkhann exclaimed, everyone in the village cheering at that.

After the celebrations were finished, Batkhann had us go to his hut and he smiled at us. "I thank you for helping my son to pass his test. In exchange, like I promised, you may all have a helping of our special brew. Eat it and you will have heightened senses that will help you against the many tough foes of the world," Batkhann said as he gave us all a bowl of a soup that looked quite disgusting, but we all dug in regardless.

And when I drank the brew, I gasped when I felt something inside of it that I fully recognized. Corvus's power. I almost gagged at that, but kept it down, me only then getting the idea to ask Batkhann. "Batkhann? I have a question," I said to him.

"Yes? What is it?" he asked me.

"Your son mentioned that his brew had a feather with black specks in it, and that they belonged to a Celestrian. And I just tasted that same Celestrian's power in this brew of mine... can you tell me where you found these feathers?" I asked him.

"Had a feeling you'd ask me that. My son told me that you were a Celestrian, which I was confused about at first until I remembered that you were searching for those golden fruits. No mortal would have gotten that many godly fruits on them all at once, so I believe your tale," Batkhann said. "And to answer your question, Mariana of Angel Falls, I found these feathers on the other side of Mount Ulbaruun, in the dead isles. They were by an abandoned temple that I don't know the past of. I found them nearly 10 years ago and there are enough for 200 more helpings of our brew," Batkhann explained.

"You're serious?... Then that can only mean one thing... he's in the depths of the Gittingham Palace... all this time, he's been right under our noses in that dreadful place..." I said with a sigh.

"Who are you talking about?" Batkhann asked.

"Master Corvus. He's a Celestrian that was the guardian of Wormwood Creek and went missing after the Gittish Empire kidnapped him when he tried to defend the Creek from them. He's been missing for over 20 years and now I know where he is... wait... oh shit..." I swore when I realized something extremely bad.

"What is it?" Stella asked me.

"The Observatory is directly above the Gittingham Palace! So that means that Corvus may have had something to do with not only the earthquake that shook the Protectorate, but also the black lights that assaulted the Observatory!" I said in worry.

"Really? Well, we can't prove anything right now, so I suggest we just go to sleep, okay?" Carl asked me.

"Yeah... I think I do need some sleep..." I sighed as Batkhann smiled at me.

"You can sleep here in my hut tonight," Batkhann smiled.

"Thank you, Batkhann," Ina smiled as Marionette already crashed down and fell asleep on a tiger skin rug.

"Um... she's sleeping on my bedding..." Batkhann said.

"I'll get her moved," Harley smiled as she moved Marionette to a different rug, this one being that fashioned out of a Splatterhorn's skin.

"Goodnight," everyone said to each other as I looked at Stella with a sigh when everyone else fell asleep.

"I'll give you the visions now... be prepared because they're doozies," Stella said to me as she cast a spell and I fell asleep... and soon I would have my visions.


	19. Chapter 19

**Chapter 19**

When I went into the visions, the first one was something I didn't expect. I was able to see someone that I never thought I'd be able to see, him looking at a foe with anger in his eyes. It was the Grand Architect! It was Zenus, just as the passages described him to look like! But the foe he was attacking? It was a gigantic monster with a snake's body and large purple wings on her back. Her hair also looked exactly like Stella's! "Daughter! If you do not stop this right now, I shall be forced to use force!" Zenus exclaimed at the monstrous woman. And then she cackled heartily before speaking... in a distorted version of Stella's voice!

"Stupid Zenus! These mortals are my playthings! With my leadership, the monsters shall kill every one of them if I so command! And the House of Gitt will get all the blame, not me!" the monster exclaimed in sheer giddiness, me only then realizing something shocking. Stella was the original creator of the Gittish Empire and Gittingham Palace!

"Very well, you leave me no choice!" Zenus exclaimed as he shot a giant beam of light at the creature, me shocked at something that happened as a result. The monstrous girl lost her snake tail and formed into two different creatures, both of them becoming unconscious afterwards. One looked like a serene woman with blonde hair, a kind smile, and a very regal body. And the other? STELLA! "From now on, Stellestria, you shall trod the earth as two beings. Celestria shall remain by my side in this realm. But you, Stella, the greater evil of the two, shall be taken down a peg. I'll find a person for you to study under and together you shall both operate the Starflight Express," Zenus said with a booming voice, Stella only then groaning awake just as the vision ended.

Then came the second vision. It was one that I was wondering if it'd top the previous one at all. And to my surprise, it started out with a bang. "Look at these feeble mortals! They abuse their power and they destroy the land they trod. And they even mock my power... from dust I created them and to dust I shall return them!" Zenus exclaimed as he shot a giant laser down at the Protectorate, Celestria stopping him at the last minute by forcing her own laser to stop Zenus's attack.

"STOP! I implore you, stay your hand!" Celestria exclaimed at him.

"You dare to oppose me, daughter?!" Zenus growled.

"I... I have faith in the mortals... you can't dismiss them!..." Celestria said with sadness as I saw something start to happen to her body that I didn't expect. Her body slowly started to form into something that I instantly recognized. "Oh... Oh my goddess..." I gulped as I saw that Celestria was turning herself into Yggdrasil! "I hereby take this form... to show that mortals must live... I shan't return to this realm... until this form bears fruit... from their gratitude..." Celestria said as she completely surrounded herself in Yggdrasil's bark and leaves, Zenus frowning at this.

"Very well... If it will get you back, then I will see if your words hold true, Celestria," Zenus said as the vision then turned to where the Observatory was, it suddenly being created as well as the first batch of Celestrians to go there as well. And at the top? Zenus warped Yggdrasil to that exact spot!

* * *

I then awoke from my visions with a shock, seeing that everyone was still asleep and that it was just before sunrise. Stella was nestled against my cheek in her small form, and I noticed she was awake as well. "Well?" she asked me.

"Yeah... I did not expect that... so... you were once a being called Stellestria... and you were the one that made all the monsters... and the House of Gitt?" I gawked at her with my voice being nothing more than a whisper.

"Yeah... I was the conscious mind, so I got the short end of the stick, working under ol' Fat Guts," Stella frowned.

"And Yggdrasil... is actually Celestria? The goddess?" I asked in shock. Stella nodded her head.

"But... why would Zenus care about mortals in the first vision... then want to annihilate the Protectorate in the next?" I asked.

"Because his attitude shifted drastically when the mortals tried to mock him in churches and in their daily routines. But then it was my task to spread the word of the Celestrians to the mortals below, my presence only being able to be heard in churches. And that was roughly a hundred years ago, now... Celestria did all of this to prove her love for mortals, but personally, I think that most of them are off-their-rockers nuts," Stella said, me smirking at that.

"You're not wrong on that much. Some mortals are pretty crazy in what they do for a living. Some are thieves, some fight monsters on a daily basis, some are extremely kind to nature and live off of it, some simply want to have sex with anyone of the opposite gender, the lists go on... but it's their passion that drives them to do those things. And that's one thing that I love about them. No matter what they do, they have passion in it, even if it's for a bad goal like thievery. Like Mason. He built that entire replica of Zere to impress his lost love... it may have been a foolish task, but it had so much dedication and care put into it that you have to admire his artistry," I smiled.

"Yeah, he's one of those off-their-rocker types for sure," Stella pouted back.

"Regardless, through his crazy goal, he made a gorgeous work of art. And I have a feeling that, when we finally get all of these Fyggs and take care of the Gittish Empire's resurrection, that we may have to face Corvus... I don't know why I think this, but I think he may have gone a bit crazy from all those years of isolation in the Palace's dungeon... if he really was the cause of all this chaos as of late, then I may have to do the unthinkable... I may have to face him in combat... but it's against the code of the Celestrians to attack their superiors..." I sighed at that.

"Well, since you have some of his powers now, I don't think you'd need to worry too much about that. If you've got some of his strength, you may be able to damage him... but only do so if he attacks you," Stella said to me.

"Yes... of course," I smiled with a small sigh, seeing that my allies were starting to stir from their sleep. "They're gonna wake up soon. Then it's off to Snowberia. I wonder what crazy thing we'll need to do to get this last Fygg?" I asked with a smile.

"No idea, but it'll probably be something dangerous," Stella smiled as she flapped her wings against my nose... which caused me to sneeze. "Oi! If I'd known you had a sensitive nose, I'd have not done that... ugh, now I'm covered in your spit..." Stella groaned as she lowered her wings and she fell on my stomach.


	20. Chapter 20

**Chapter 20**

Upon leaving the camp of Batsureg, we proceeded back to the Urdus Marshlands and, using the instructions on the map, we headed towards the east coast, the scenery starting to become a bit snowy the further we moved north and east. And once we reached Hermany Hill, the place turned into a full on tundra, as did most of the enemies. Now we came across enemies of differing kinds that could only exist in this frozen area. They included the Icikillers, Brrearthenwarriors, White Tigertaurs, and Shivery Shrubberies. But we also came across the derpy-but-powerful Great Gruffons and the scary Tearwolves, but our group actually handling all of them with ease from the brew sharpening our senses.

"Well, this is quite cool! That brew really does the trick! I'm able to move lightning fast now! And we can handle these monsters like they're nothing!" Harley smiled.

"Keep this up, and you'll reach Class 1 Paladin status in no time, sis!" Ina smiled at Harley.

"Yeah... t-t-that's all good... b-b-but why are m-my t-teeth ch-ch-chattering?... And why does my skin feel t-tingly?" Marionette asked, obviously not used to winter weather.

"It's called being cold. It's your body's natural reaction to do that stuff when you experience cold weather like this place... maybe we should get you some warmer attire when we finally reach the academy," Carl smiled.

"I'm getting a bit nippy too... hey... what's that in the distance? Looks like a giant building in a gated area," I said as I saw something in the distance.

"That's Swinedimples Academy, the place where aspiring vocation seekers go to learn their craft. They can include warriors that face monsters, scholars that document things, a recreational job such as dancing, and even becoming teachers at the academy themselves," Carl explained, us moving forward through the snow before we finally reached the place, us immediately feeling a bit cozier when we walked into the schoolyard, seeing tons of different people going about their business with happiness.

"I say that we go try to find the Headmaster. If we can find him, we may be able to know if a Fygg is anywhere near here," Ina said.

"Alright, you guys were here before we were, so you lead us to him," I said to them.

"Of course," Harley smirked as she led us into the main academy building and led us down some halls and up a staircase before we finally met the Headmaster, him looking at our group with confusion until he recognized the trio with me.

"Oh my word! Is that you three? The Gleeban Three? I haven't seen you in years!" the Headmaster smiled at them.

"It's nice to see you too, Headmaster," Carl smiled as he bowed politely.

"Hello, friend! My name's Mari-" she was about to say her real name until I stopped her.

"Uh, Marion. Her name is Marion Bloome," I said, Marionette looking confused at that before I whispered the explanation into her ear. "This guy probably knows a lot about everywhere and he'd probably be shocked to learn you were once a doll... just play the acting game of Marion Bloome for our stay here then we can go back to calling you Marionette," I whispered to her, Marionette then getting it.

"Yes, my name is Marion Bloome, of Bloomingdale," Marionette smiled as she did a little curtsy.

"I see. Are you here to visit? Or would you like to help us out with a certain issue happening at this academy?" the Headmaster asked, my eyebrows being raised at that.

"What issue are you referring to?" I asked him.

"Well, you see, about roughly 6 days ago, one of our strict teachers died after eating a strange golden fruit. And ever since then, we've been getting some disturbing reports from the students... apparently students that are out of their dorms past curfew have suddenly vanished and then the next morning, they'd be scared stiffer than an ice sculpture with obvious book imprints on their skins that formed into bruises. I don't want any harm to come to my students, so I was going to hire a detective to solve this case, but since you're here, Gleeban Trio, I want to ask if you and your allies could fill in for him? I want you to learn what is causing our students to disappear and then reappear in the states they're in. In exchange, I shall give you a hefty sum of money and the best sword in the academy, the Hypernova Sword. Do you accept this request?" the Headmaster asked, me gasping and then drooling at the term Hypernova Sword.

I had only heard myths and legends of that super powerful sword. How it was able to fell even the strongest of demons and be able to slice through the hardest of steel! I could only imagine the damage I could dish out if I had that sword on my person! "Oh you are so on! We'll get to the bottom of this incident, we promise!" I said with seriousness and giddiness at the same time, Ina smirking at me as did Stella.

"Well, I admire your enthusiasm at least. Tell me, what's your name?" the Headmaster asked me.

"My name is Mariana. I come from Angel Falls," I smiled at him, the Headmaster gasping when he heard my name.

"I've heard of your battle prowess from some of the students, Mariana. In fact, one of our newest students, a man named Phlegming, credits you as being from the heavens. Is it true that you were once a Celestrian?" the Headmaster asked, me smirking at that.

"Still am one, though it is easy not to realize I am one," I smirked as I turned around and showed off my featherless wings, the man smirking at them. "I used to have feathers on these babies, but I lost them when I fell from the Observatory to the Protectorate. And now I'm on a quest to find Fyggs, which are vital to get out of the Protectorate and back to the Observatory as soon as possible. And you just mentioned that the teacher in question ate a Fygg before dying, correct? I have a feeling that I'll find the Fygg if I can find the one responsible for these incidents," I smiled.

"You're as astute as Phlegming said! But if you're going to do this mission correctly, you're all going to need a change of wardrobe. It'll be strictly undercover and you'll need to wear some school uniforms to blend in with the crowd. Then you can ask the numerous students at the Academy to try and learn where the incidents are taking place and where the students are disappearing to at night," the Headmaster said as he produced many different outfits similar to what the students outside were wearing. School uniforms.

"Okay... where do we go to change into these?" I asked, stopping Marionette before she could start changing in front of the Headmaster.

"Uh... you can change in the bathroom behind me," he said as he showed a bathroom behind him that had a lock on the door.

"Thanks... Marion? Change in bathrooms please?" I asked her with a smile, her looking a bit confused at that as I then led her into the bathroom with me. We were changing together I guessed.

"Did I do something wrong?" Marionette asked as I locked the door and she only then started to undress.

"A common custom of being a mortal is that you need to change in privacy. People can get uncomfortable really quickly if you change in front of them and, heaven forbid you change in front of the wrong person. Humans have a tendency to rape women if they undress in public," I warned her, Marionette looking confused by the word 'rape' as she took off all of her clothes and she was now in only her undies.

"What does 'rape' mean?" she asked.

"It means that someone of the opposite gender attacks you and tries to force you into having sex. As in, a boy can attack and rape a girl and a girl could do the same to a man, though those instances of women on men rape are fairly rare," I said to her, Marionette gasping when I said the explanation.

"Oh my... Okay, I promise to change in privacy from now on. I don't want that to ever happen to me... and I do know what sex is... I read a book about it back in the mansion..." Marionette said with concern as she then put on her uniform and I did the same with mine, both of us exiting the bathroom for Ina and Harley to change next.

"Apologies for my friend's confusion.. she's not really accustomed with the outside world yet. She's been living in Bloomingdale for her entire life and only recently got better from her fatal illness. So she's a bit new to the outside world," I explained, Marionette smiling at how I was playing the dumb game as much as she was.

"Yes, I have heard about Marion Bloome before... apparently, they happen to have found a secret graveyard in the mansion and they found 3 tombstones... but I only know of the mother and father being dead and they only had Marion Bloome as the last living resident... so who are you really?" the Headmaster said, Marionette gasping at that before sighing.

"Okay, I'll explain it to you... see, Marion had a Fygg on her and she was on death's door... she then wished for Marionette, this girl here, to have the Fygg and become alive. Marionette, at the time, was a doll made of wood and nails. But thanks to me helping her out, now Marion is able to rest in peace and Marionette is now fully mortal without the Fygg in her body because of me supplying her with one of my feathers," I explained.

"Really? Well, you do look like the spitting image of what they described Marion to look like. I guess you want to pretend to be Ms Bloome during your stay here to prevent people from knowing your real name, right?" the Headmaster asked.

"Yes, that's the case," Marionette smiled.

"Very well then. If a student does happen to ask you, however, say that the grave belongs to a pet you used to have that you also called Marion Bloome," the Headmaster smiled.

"Sounds like a story I can stick to. Okay... but what kind of pet would it be?" Marionette asked.

"Maybe a cat? People love cats, so that may be a good choice," Carl smiled.

"Okay. Acat. The pet was an acat," Marionette smiled, me face palming at that.

"No, the species is cat. Just cat. C A T..." I said, only now realizing the full story of how ditsy Marionette could be.

"Oh, okay. Cat. So it's called 'cat'. Okay," Marionette smiled, the Headmaster chuckling warmly at this as the girls finished up, allowing Carl to change into the only male version of the outfits the Headmaster had.

The bell rung just as Carl exited the bathroom, the Headmaster smiling at that. "That's the bell for lunch time. I suggest you get to the lunch room to have a helping of our food with the other students," the Headmaster smiled at us, Marionette immediately rushing out the door when he said that. "Uh... I'm guessing she loves food now that she's a mortal, huh?" he smiled.

"Right on the dot, Headmaster. Right on the dot," I smiled at him.


	21. Chapter 21

**Chapter 21**

We soon joined back up with Marionette and saw she already had a ton of food on her lunch tray and she had already sat with a couple of other students and them already talking to each other. "I'm going to sit with Marionette. You guys want to sit somewhere else?" I asked my friends.

"We don't mind sitting at a different table," Ina smiled as I got in line and got some food, that being a grilled cheese sandwich, honey-coated biscuits, and some fried rice. They really knew how to deliver in terms of good food, I thought. After getting my food, I then proceeded to the table Marionette was sitting at and saw she had been talking to a boy around 16 years old, a 14 year old boy, and two female friends that were roughly 18 or so.

"Hello. Are you her friend? Because she's a little bit daft," the 16 year old boy said.

"What does 'daft' mean?" Marionette asked.

"She's just not used to being in the outside world. She's lived her entire life in a mansion and this is her first exposure to an outside area," I smiled at them.

"Ah, so she isn't well-versed in the world? That makes a bit more sense. When I said that I was a student, she said 'Hello Astudent' nice to meet you," the man smiled at me.

"So what's your names?" I smirked.

"My name is Fred, and I'm hoping to become the next Headmaster," the 16 year old boy said, me memorizing his appearance so I'd remember him. He had messy blonde hair and green eyes, but he also had a fit look to him under his school uniform.

"My name is London," said one of the girls.

"And I'm Tiptin," her identical companion said, me smirking at that.

"So are you two twins?" I smiled.

"Yep! Born on the same day and identical in every way but occupation choices. I want to be a dancer, she wants to be a magician," Tiffany smiled.

"And I'm Handel. I'm here to become a doctor so I can help people get better," he smiled.

"My name is Maria. I'm here just for a few days," I said, the four students all looking at me confused.

"What do you mean?" Fred asked.

"I'll cut to the chase. Have any of you heard anything about the mysterious disappearances of students? And do you possibly know where they've been reappearing afterwards?" I asked them, Fred chuckling warmly at that as Tiptin and London both gasped and looked extremely scared and fidgety all of a sudden.

"Y-You c-can't be serious, Maria! If we said where that place was... h-he said he'd hurt us tenfold!" Tipton said as her hands shook in fear, making it difficult for her to eat her sandwich.

"You're still going on about that story? That the dead teacher is kidnapping students and scaring the shit out of 'em? Why would anyone believe that?" Fred asked.

"Maybe because they have evidence on them that it did happen? Do you happen to have any markings on you girls?" Marionette asked them.

"Y-Yes... here," London sighed as she lifted up the side of her blouse so we could see her hip, us all gasping at the giant bruise mark left in the shape of a book.

"Who... Who did this to you?" Fred gawked when he saw it and Handel looked at it with intrigue.

"The Dreadmaster did it! If you stay out past curfew, even if it's by accident like with me and Tiptin, he forces you into the Old School ruins and beats you mercilessly if you don't listen to him!" London said with tears in her eyes.

"I don't think she's fibbing. Nobody would cry like this if they were telling porkies... and these bruises aren't going away anytime soon. Whoever hit you girls obviously used a hard cover book of good size," Handel said at that.

"Well then I guess that I'll just have to teach this Dreadmaster a lesson he won't soon forget. This injustice can't go unpunished," I said, the girls gasping at me as they saw something on me.

"Um... what is that pink light inside of your shirt? It looks pretty..." they smiled.

"Oh come the flap on! How many mortals are going to be able to see me?!" Stella groaned, but she didn't return to normal size.

"She's my fairy friend. But she wants to be kept secret," Marionette smiled.

"I see her too... I thought fairies were make-believe creatures?" Fred asked.

"Not when they're the sister of the goddess and the stewardess of the Starflight Express," I smirked, Handel smirking at that.

"So you're this Mariana person that Phlegming's been telling me so much about! The one from Angel Falls that came from the heavens," Handel gawked.

"Yes, but don't tell anyone that? Just keep the act going until we've dealt with the 'Dreadmaster'? I'm on a secret undercover mission to find the cause of the disappearing students," I said.

"Cool! We promise to keep your secret... and as for where the Old School is, it's underneath the tombstone of the Founder of Swinedimples. You'll need to go there after curfew to take him on," Tiptin said with concern for me.

"Okay. And what time is curfew?" Marionette asked.

"It's at dusk, right as the sun goes down," Fred said.

* * *

I did as instructed by the students and met up with my allies at the tombstone of the founder just as the sun went down. "Okay, we're here as they said, but I see no sign of the Dreadmaster... where could it be?" Ina asked as we heard the curfew bell ding and we looked at the tombstone that had the founder's name on it.

"You think he'd show up to take us in. Especially us, since we're still technically Swinedimples students," Carl said as he held onto Harley and Ina with concern. And then, just as he said that, something happened to him that I didn't expect. His body locked up and so did Ina's and Harley's!

"Ack... c-can't... m-move..." Harley groaned as she tried to fight it, but obviously not being able to. Whoever this Dreadmaster was, his magic was not to be underestimated, but it only appeared to affect the trio from Gleeba as they were all students here before.

"I-I'm scared, guys..." Ina said as Carl's body then started to move of its own accord as the tombstone then slid out to reveal a staircase.

"We'll get in there first," Marionette said with seriousness for a change as we rushed into the staircase before our friends and after all of us were down in the old school ruins, the tombstone still remained moved.

"M-My body's moving on its own! It's gotta be the Dreadmaster's influence! His magic is able to overpower that of even the Celestrians... only a Fygg could have this effect, I'm sure of it!" Carl said, his body stopping in place once he said that and once we had reached a library area in the old school ruins.

"How do you know of the fruit?" asked the voice of a very booming and mean voice, one that Harley gasped at.

"That doesn't sound like a bossy teacher to me... are... are you the Founder of Swinedimples?" Harley asked aloud.

It was just then that a spirit appeared in front of us, him looking like a buff man with a handlebar mustache, a stern gaze, and him wearing a brown tuxedo. "That is I... how do you know who I am and how do you know of that fruit?" the Founder asked with a stern gaze.

"I am the one you should be talking to, Dreadmaster. And speaking of, you have no damn right to be assaulting these innocent students for being outside of curfew! Hell, Tiptin and London said they were out accidentally and you just beat them mercilessly with books! Just because you're the founder doesn't mean you have to be a class one jerk and assault the students!" I yelled at him with anger in my eyes, the Founder gasping at my choice language.

"Are... Are you being sincere in your words?... I just thought I was fulfilling that teacher's dying wish by being stricter... but I just turned into a monster..." the Founder frowned as Carl, Ina, and Harley then gaining control of their bodies once again. "Here, take this damn fruit. I don't want to be remembered for being a monster," the Founder said as his spirit disappeared and the Fygg appeared afterwards.

"Well, I'll be flapped! You got all 7 Fyggs! Now all we've gotta do is go back and report our job well done to the Headmaster and then go back to the Starflight Express," Stella smirked.

"Yeah, but before we do that, I need to go over the plan with you about what we're going to do with Aquila," I said to my allies.

"You can tell us the plan on our way to the Headmaster," Ina smiled.


	22. Chapter 22

**Chapter 22**

Once I explained the plan, everyone understood just before we got into the Headmaster's office. "We're clear on the plan here?" I asked my friends.

"Right, we promise not to screw it up," Ina smiled.

"I promise too," Marionette smirked.

"Okay, now let's go get our reward," I smirked as we proceeded into the Headmaster's office and saw he was just about to leave as we came in.

"Oh! Apologies, Headmaster, we didn't know you were about to leave," Harley apologized when she accidentally hit him with the door.

"Oh, it's quite alright... wait... why are you here at this hour?" he asked.

"You won't believe it, but we got rid of the issue revolving around the students being kidnapped and beaten. See?" I smiled as I showed that I now had all 7 Fyggs.

"One more than you had previously. That means you dealt with the issue?" the Headmaster smirked.

"Turns out that the one responsible was the Founder of the academy, Sternivus Swinedimple. He was trying to grant the wish that the strict teacher said before he died, that being that the students would be punished more severely. And once I told him off, he gave back the Fygg. But his magic with the fruit was quite powerful, being able to take control of Ina, Carl, and Harley all because they were Swinedimples students," I explained to him, having read the name of the tombstone that was above the old school ruins.

"Well, I'd say this case is solved then! I should give you your well-earned rewards now. Here is the money and the Hypernova Sword as agreed on," the Headmaster smiled as he handed Harley 2000 gold pieces and he gave me the sword, me amazed at how powerful it felt just holding it.

"This is gonna be great!" I smirked as I holstered it on my back with a smile.

"I'm glad you like it. Be gentle with it and be sure you use it for good and not evil," the Headmaster said to me.

"No Celestrian knows evil in their heart," I smiled at him with a wink, our group then bidding our goodbyes and leaving the school through the front doors and seeing that Fred was coming into the school with some of his friends.

"Are you guys okay? We heard that you went to the Old School under the tombstone! You didn't get hit, did you?" Tiptin asked.

"You don't need to worry about that anymore, guys. We handled that ghost. Turns out, it was the spirit of the founder of Swinedimples that was being influenced by a golden fruit. The same golden fruit that the strict teacher ate before he died," Harley smiled at her.

"Really? So, you're leaving us now? Only one day of schooling?" Fred asked.

"Well, we have other priorities, Fred. Like getting these Fyggs back to the Observatory and dealing with the resurrection of the Gittish Empire," I said to them, London being the only one to gasp at that.

"T-The Gittish Empire is back? Oh hell no! We're gonna be screwed if they aren't taken care of soon!" London said with concern.

"Don't worry, we'll handle them before they can hurt anyone," Marionette smiled as I then took my hands around everyone in my group and I zoomed us over to the Alltrades Abbey, Stella smiling at how the Starflight Express was still there like nothing ever happened to it.

"Time to board the train again. You'll need to climb the tree from the trunk up to reach it, though," Stella frowned.

"Or... another option... someone who already has wings can fly us up there one by one?" I smirked, Stella frowning at my statement.

"I don't have as strong of wings as you Celestrians do, Mariana. I can only use mine to carry my own weight and possibly forty more pounds. I can't lift any of you up there," Stella said to me.

"Fine, we'll climb up there," Harley smiled as she took the lead and climbed to the top of the tree first, then followed by Carl and then Marionette, Ina having trouble at trying to get up there, so I had her piggyback me so I could carry her up to the train engine of the Starflight. "Okay. Everyone accounted for?" Harley asked as she counted everyone in the car and saw all of us were in it.

"Okay, time to initiate our plan against the Gittish Empire. Stella, fly this thing towards Wormwood, if ya please?" I smiled at her.

"Aye aye, Captain!" she smirked as she fiddled with the controls and she turned the Starflight towards the southwest, us going in that direction and me already feeling a sinister presence starting to follow us.

"Get ready, guys. I can feel it. Barbarus and one of the House of Gitt members is close by," Carl said as he readied his wand and I held my sword in hand, us hearing a loud roar from the side just as we were passing into Wormwood.

"Hoo are you too think yoou can get away with those Fyggs that easily?" I heard a very high pitched hooting voice say. "Hootingham Gore, if I'm not mistaken?" I frowned as the large dark dragon showed his face from the side of the Starflight and we saw Aquila there as well as the lieutenant himself, him looking just as disturbing as the tales said he did. He had the body of a man and the face of an owl. And his stare is said to be so powerful against mortals that it causes them to go into a deep sleep for days upon him gazing at them eye-to-eye.

"Master Aquila? What are you doing?" I asked, playing the dumb game as Aquila noticed my allies and had a deep frown on his face. But I could sense it. He was impressed that these mortals could see him and the Starflight.

"I'm sorry, Mariana, but you have something that belongs to the House of Gitt. And I intend to get all of them! Give me the Fyggs!" Aquila said as he took out his Bastard Sword and looked at me with seriousness in his eyes.

"No! Never! Why are you siding with the bad guys?" I asked him as my allies took their arms up as well, them knowing that they had to fake being defeated too.

"You wouldn't understand. Now, give them to me!" Aquila exclaimed as he cast a spell on us that I knew would be hard on our bodies, but we all pretended like it was the end for us when it hit. Kaboomle. It knocked all of us all around the ship from the force of the blast and it caused the Fyggs to fall out of my bag and roll over to Aquila, him picking all of them up and placing them in his own knapsack.

"Oh my goddess! You're ruining the interior design, you flapping idiots! Get out of here!" Stella exclaimed as she tried to rush at Aquila, but he quickly escaped with his powerful wings and Barbarus roared mightily.

"Send them falling, Barbarus," Hootingham Gore smirked, the dark dragon breathing out a Kafrizz at our train car and causing all of us to fall off the Express and start falling down to the ground below, Ina looking incredibly scared because of how high up we were!

"Don't worry guys! I have a method! Safe Passage!" Carl exclaimed, him casting a spell around us and us gasping at how it slowed our descent as we landed in some waters in the town of Wormwood Creek, our falls still having a thud sound to them, but us not really getting too badly injured. Just a bit sore.

"Whew... thanks Carl. You saved our hides," I smiled at him as I noticed that Stella was still in the Starflight Express and she had to park it atop a different tree just outside of Wormwood Creek and us seeing it had a large burn mark on the side of it. And we then were approached by a bunch of town citizens, all of them looking none too happy to see us.

"Who are you and what the hell are you doing here? Moreover, how the hell did you get here from the sky?!" asked a very sturdy, rustic man with a great beard and a very mad look on his face.

"We uh... We were inside a flying train trying to get some important items somewhere, but then a big mean dragon attacked us and we fell here," Marionette said with her usual innocence.

"Peh! Like we'd believe a story that fucking daft?! What are you goin' on abo-" the man exclaimed before Ina touched his arm and he looked towards the west just as Stella blew the whistle of the Starflight Express. "Y-You're... Get out of this place! RIGHT NOW! We do not accept your blasted kind in this town, winged freaks!" the man exclaimed in anger as he actually threw Ina into the puddle we were in with force, me growling at him as he was about to walk away before I said something that made him stop in his tracks.

"It's because of Corvus, isn't it?" I asked, the man stopping in place and turning his head at me.

"How do you know that name?" he asked with a growl.

"Because I'm trying to rescue him from being captured from the Gittish Empire, which, by the way, has risen from the dead. That dragon that attacked us? A resurrected Barbarus," I frowned at him, the mayor growling at that, but still standing there to listen all the same. "We didn't mean to intrude in your village at all, it was by complete accident. We just want to know where we may be able to find Greygnarl so we can take the fight to Barbarus," I said to him.

"Peh, we don't have the ability to get you lot to Upover right now. The way's been closed off for ages because the bridge is broken. Like we'd actually care about you Celestrians anyways, after you just up and let my daughter get killed by those blasted Gitt members," the man said, me gasping as I suddenly remembered how she looked like.

"Wait... did she happen to have a purple hood? Have brown hair, blue eyes, and a very calm, soothing voice? And that she was in love with Corvus?" I asked, the man gasping as I said all the details.

"T-That's exactly it!... But how would you know what... she... wait... y-you saw her spirit, didn't you?" the man asked.

"Not just once, but twice we saw her spirit. The first time was in the area of Angel Falls, then again on our way through Dourbridge. She said she would 'tell us everything' when we reached Wormwood Creek... is this Wormwood Creek by chance?" I asked him.

The man sighed and looked away with his head hanging down. "Yes, this is Wormwood Creek... if you say you saw my daughter, I ask that, if you find her spirit nearby, you take me to her so I can speak with her? I... I miss her so much," the man sighed.

"And what's your name?" Harley asked.

"Stan. Stan Doffish," the man said, the name being a bit confusing to me, but me nodding all the same.

"Okay. Where do you think we may be able to find her burial ground? And what was her name? Because she didn't really tell us," I asked him.

"Her name was Serena. The kindest and purest girl in the world, killed by the Gittish Empire because she tried to protect that worthless Corvus. He couldn't even protect us," Stan growled lowly. Now I saw why he was so angry at us when we were here. The issue with Corvus's capture was a lot more serious than I thought... I didn't know someone died because of Corvus being unable to protect Wormwood Creek, but the Gittish Empire were the ones to blame, not Corvus...

"We'll find her, Stan," I said.

"Her grave is to the north of our village in a small cave. It was the same place that we found her lifeless body, her smile even being there in death," Stan sighing as I noticed he was verging on the edge of tears.

"Let's go guys," I said, giving him some space as we proceeded to the area he mentioned and seeing one thing in particular about this area. These monsters were TOUGH! Some of them included the Bloody Manguinis, Splatterhorns, Sluggernaughts, and even Whirly Girlies, which were basically clown monsters with their lower halves being a miniature tornado. But with our great weapons and our heightened senses from Batsureg's brew, we still managed to take care of these monsters without getting hit once, though some of them were deadly because of what they were, those being the Gramarye Gruffons and the Skeleton Soldiers. The Skeleton Soldiers were definitely affiliated with the Gittish Empire (except they had no brains, so they didn't remember their orders. Just primal thoughts) and the Gramarye Gruffons were giant hulks that were able to throw boulders. If we didn't have the brew inside of us, these beasts would be quite dangerous.

We eventually came upon a cave and we immediately felt a familiar presence in our midst. "Hello? Serena? Are you here?... We'd like to ask you some questions," Stella called out, hoping that the spirit would respond. And sure enough, she did.


	23. Chapter 23

**Chapter 23**

"I've been waiting for you..." Serena's soothing voice smiled as she appeared before us in front of a small pool of water that looked to have magic properties to it.

"Serena? Do you want to explain what happened with Corvus? Because we met your dad and... he's not too fond of Celestrians for some reason," Marionette asked.

"Who is this woman?" Serena asked.

"Oh, that's right! You didn't meet her yet, did you? Serena, this is Marionette. She's been with us ever since we got her Fygg from Bloomingdale," I smiled.

"I see... well, I'd want to tell you what happened... but I need to know if I can trust you first, Celestrian... if you can retrieve an important item for me, I will explain everything to you... and I saw you speaking with my father... he wants to see me? And hear my side of the story?" Serena asked with a smile.

"Yes, that's right," I smiled gently.

"Well, when you find my important item, bring him here. As for where the item is, it's underneath the destroyed Celestrian Statue in the watery area. Move it backwards and you'll find my necklace," Serena smiled before she then sat down on the ground by a tombstone that had a picture of her face on the side as an offering. "He still gives me gifts... Thanks, Wallace..." Serena smirked as she dusted off the picture with her ghastly breath and planted the roses left there in the ground.

"Should we also see about bringing a guy named Wallace with us?" I asked.

"If you want," Serena said with a smile.

We then proceeded back to the Creek town and found the mayor's house, seeing that there was a young teenager there along with him. He had very shaggy black hair, a bit of fuzz on his cheeks, and he wore a teal colored shirt and pants on him with brown boots. "Wallace, what are you doing?" Stan asked the kid.

"I'm telling you, pops! I saw the whole thing happen! A gigantic dragon with dark purple scales sent a fireball at something invisible and then those people fell from it! The Gittish Empire is coming to attack us and we need their help to get to Upover!" Wallace said with fear in his voice.

"You're talking about Barbarus, right?" Ina asked with a shy smile as Stan then noticed us behind him.

"Sorry for intruding, but we met with her. She requests that you come with us to her grave with Wallace after we get her an important item that was close to her," I said to them, Stan raising his eyebrows as he also had his eyes grow a bit bigger.

"Very well... what is this item?" Stan asked.

"This is the item," Marionette said, as she was the one in charge of getting the statue moved, her presenting a necklace that looked like it had a Celestrian ornament on it that I instantly recognized.

"T-That's Corvus's necklace... h-he must have given this to Serena at some point..." I gawked when I recognized it and held it, getting a small flashback of when I first saw Corvus without the necklace and I memorized his appearance. He had pure white hair on his head, his wings were white with black marks patterned in them at some parts, and he had the kindest smile in the world.

He also was wearing a different necklace at the time, that being one that looked to have a small doll head on it that had Serena's resemblance on it. "This must be the item that Serena wanted us to find... now I say we go out to meet her. But I have to tell you both, since she's now a spirit, you'll have to hold onto one of our hands in order to see her," I said.

"We're fine with that... by the way, sorry for throwing you into the water little one... should've known that you weren't a full Celestrian from just your appearance," Stan frowned.

"It's fine. Besides, I only am able to have some of Mariana's powers because we ate her feathers accidentally," Ina explained as I revealed the featherless wings on my back and Stan frowned at them.

"So you're a full-blooded Celestrian. How did you lose your feathers?" Stan asked as we proceeded out towards the cave in question, our group protecting our new allies from the monsters that tried to come after us.

"You remember that earthquake that hit almost a week ago? Well, that same earthquake caused giant pillars of dark magic to assault the Observatory, just as Yggdrasil bared fruit. The Fyggs fell to the Protectorate and I was whisked off the Observatory and fell all the way to Angel Falls in the process, the force of the fall causing my wings to lose all their feathers by either burning off or flying off," I said.

"Wow, sounds almost like what happened with Corvus when he first came here. From what dad told me, he fell from the heavens and needed nursed back to health by Serena... and that's how they started their relationship... I still wish I could've met her when she was alive. I wasn't even conceived when she died," Wallace frowned.

"We'll learn more when we meet with her," I smiled as we arrived at the cave and I saw Serena sitting by the water with a smile, her turning her head to see us.

"Why does it feel a bit colder in here than usual?" Wallace asked.

"Because she's here. Areas become slightly chillier when there's a spirit present... allow me to hold your hands?" I asked.

"Okay..." Stan said as he held onto Carl's hand and Wallace held onto Marionette's hand, both of them gasping when they saw the ghost of Serena appear before them.

"S-S-Serena?... Is that really you, love?" Stan asked with shock.

"Yes, it is I, father... and it is nice to finally meet you as well, brother Wallace..." Serena smiled gently, Wallace smirking at how Serena had planted the roses he left.

"I believe this is yours... it belonged to Corvus at one point, right?" I smiled as I presented her the necklace, Serena smiling at that.

"Yes... it once belonged to Corvus... my love..." Serena smiled as the scenery changed around us, which shocked me. Normally spirits weren't able to show their memories to Celestrians and those that could see the spirit world, but then I remembered that Serena was a pretty powerful spirit. She was able to travel all over the place, something that most spirits weren't able to do. Most spirits were confined to only a few miles away from their resting places.

We then started to see how Serena first met Corvus, him and her starting a budding relationship as the scenery then changed to something that made me gasp. The monstrous soldiers of the Gittish Empire.

"No! You cannot take this town!" Corvus exclaimed at the group of monster soldiers as he held them off at the north end.

"Peh! Why are we even talking to you when we could just do this?" the head soldier smirked as he then looked behind him. "Bring the girl," he commanded, a duo of skeletal swordsmen appearing with their arms around Serena, her face riddled with tears and her frown plain as day, Corvus gasping at that.

"Let her go!" Corvus demanded, the commander laughing at his order.

"Hehehe! Here's what's going to happen, foolish Celestrian. Either you come with us as our prisoner and we spare this town... or we kill this girl before we kill you and burn the town to the ground," the monster soldier hissed.

Corvus collapsed onto the ground and let his blade fall to the ground, knowing he was extremely outnumbered 30 to 1 and that he couldn't save Serena unless he surrendered. "Do with me as you will... just don't hurt my beloved..." Corvus cried onto the ground.

"Go get him and take him to the palace," the commander said to some winged soldiers, them both doing so and the commander looking at the girl, who smiled at him.

"He and I will never be apart... even if it takes a thousand years... I will find him again..." Serena said with a smile.

The soldier then did something that made me growl with anger. He plunged his spear into Serena's chest, Serena not even so much as choking. She kept her smile on her face through the pain until her heart stopped beating and she fell to the ground. "Time to clear out, boys!" the commander exclaimed with laughter, one of the soldiers speaking up.

"Aren't we going to burn the town?" the one monster asked, him being a Ghoul in armor.

"This hodunk town has nothing going for it. It's not even worth burning to ashes! HAHAHAHA!" the commander guffawed as the vision then ended afterwards, Stan and Wallace both in shock when they saw it.

"A-All this time... All this damn time... I thought Corvus was the cause of your death... but it wasn't him... it was that commander... he broke his promise and killed you without a second thought..." Stan collapsed onto the ground in tears.

"I recognized the face and voice of that commander... he looked like a pig, so that had to be Goreham Hogg, the prison warden of the Gittish Empire. His favorite weapon for torture is a flail. But for battle, he opts for spears. He killed tons of people in his prison, the Goretress, and I'm sure he's going to have more prisoners with his resurrection. We need to find Greygnarl and get his help to stop the Gittish Empire from succeeding once more," I said with seriousness.

"I.. I never knew that you were so brave, Serena..." Wallace gawked with him producing tears too.

"If you want to get Greygnarl's help and eventually rescue the world from the Gittish Empire, you'll need to go to Upover. The only problem is that it's on a mountain to the west and the bridge that crossed there before is demolished by the Dark Dragon, Barbarus a few days ago. You'll need to venture into the Bowhole and collect the Wyrmlight Bow. If you shoot an arrow from it from the start of the bridge over to the other side, it will create a path of light that shall never dwindle and can be walked upon. I shall await you at the entrance to the Bowhole, where I will break the seal so you can retrieve the bow. I put my trust in you, Mariana and friends... only you can save the world..." Serena smiled as she disappeared in a puff of smoke.

"S-She's gone?" Stan gawked.

"No, she just warped herself to the Bowhole most likely. She's a very powerful spirit to have given us that vision. We're going to go and get that Wyrmlight Bow. You guys should go back to the town. Can you handle going back on your own?" I asked the duo. "Yeah, we can. We have Chimera feathers," Wallace said. "Okay. Farewell for now," I smiled at them as our group left and the duo stayed in the cave for a bit longer, most likely to pay their respects to Serena.

"You really think they'll be okay?" Harley asked.

"After what they just saw, I think they're happy to have some clarity. Just a bit shocked," Carl said.

"What does clarity mean?" Marionette asked.

"It means that a burden has been taken off of them. They feel more at ease with their new knowledge," I explained to her.

"Oh, now I get it," Marionette smirked.


	24. Chapter 24

**Chapter 24**

After we left the cave, we proceeded towards the west to find the Bowhole and had to go through some forested areas with dark gray trees as well as a strange mist of a foreboding nature as we arrived at the entrance to the place, seeing that there was a seal of dark magic that blocked the entrance and that Serena was already there. "I thought you'd come eventually," she smiled as she turned around to greet us. "This seal protects the Bowhole and the Wyrmlight Bow that lies within. I'll do the chant now," Serena said as she faced the magic barrier and started to speak.

"Words from one that is Wyrmwood Born, I implore this seal to be nevermore! Disperse!" Serena exclaimed, the barrier disintegrating and allowing us access.

"Whoa! That was cool!" Ina smirked.

"Okay, that's my work here done... now I need to go off in search of Corvus... but I have a feeling that I'll find him eventually if I just travel with you, so I shall await you on the Starflight Express," Serena said.

"Just don't mess with the controls!" Stella called out as Serena walked away.

"Okay," Serena smirked back while she kept walking, her deciding to walk the whole way there without teleporting. Our group then went into the Bowhole's entrance and were shocked to see three different holes, each of them going down a considerable way.

"Hmm... I think we should take the middle one," Harley said.

"Well, I think we should take the left one," Carl frowned.

"But what about the one on the right?" Marionette asked.

"I have a way to decide which way. Just let me flutter down each hole before you guys so I can find the best route," Stella smirked.

"Fair enough, have at it," I smiled at Stella, her starting with the hole on the right, then emerging and looking into the hole on the left, and finally the middle one before appearing again.

"Okay, this hole leads to a locked door, and so does this one. The middle hole is the way to go," Stella said as we followed after her and we proceeded into the place after falling down a slope and into a room that had some urns around. And after we proceeded more forward, we started to encounter some monsters in the form of Blood Mummies, Python Priests, and Sculpture Vultures. And when we proceeded down some stairs to the north, we encountered some more monsters that were quite large, those including Living Statues, Harmours, and Drakularges.

"Wow, these monsters are pretty damn big," I gawked at the Drakularges in particular.

"Yeah, I agree... wait... you hear that?" Ina asked as I heard some strange clank sounds coming from around a blind corner. And where there were clanking sounds, there was a robotic or metal-laden enemy. But when we turned the corner, we all were shocked to see an incredibly rare monster, the Liquid Metal Slime!

"Gentle now..." Harley said as she holstered her weapon as did Carl and Ina, which prompted me and Marionette to do the same. The Liquid Metal Slime then saw us and looked confused by our slow movements.

"Hi little guy... how are you?" Ina smiled as she pulled out a lump of iron ore and placed it on the ground, the Liquid Metal Slime looking at her with curiosity as it then slowly moved forward and absorbed the iron ore into its body.

"You're... not attacking?... How... strange... clank..." the Liquid Metal Slime spoke slowly.

"We'd never hurt an endangered species. Whenever we see one of you Metal Slimes, we just have to be kind to you because you're so cute!" Harley smiled in a hushed voice that sounded excited at the same time.

"Cute... thanks for... the compliment... and the food..." the Liquid Metal Slime smiled as it then produced something from its body and we looked at it with a smile. "A gift... for being so kind... clank..." Carl gently received the gift and we saw that it was a very cool piece of armor, one that I knew was incredibly rare. Metal King Armor.

"Thank you, friend," Carl smiled as he gave the armor to Harley and she immediately changed out of her current armor and put on the Metal King Armor, her looking absolutely badass as a result.

"It's light as a feather... never expected that," Harley gawked. We then proceeded some more down the ruins until we came across a room that had a giant statue in the middle, it looking quite unique. It looked to be some kind of quadrupedal monster but with an upper body that had four arms, a giant shield, and a giant sword.

"Halt! Do you wish to wield the Wyrmlight?" the statue spoke.

"Yes, we do," I said with seriousness.

"Those who seek to wield the Wyrmlight must first defeat me in battle. GA-" the statue exclaimed as it started to shake back and forth before it then zoomed into the air above us! "DRONG!" it yelled as it then slammed into the ground and a bright flash of light happened before we saw the statue come to life! "GO!" it exclaimed as we then entered a battle with the beast.

I immediately started the fight by attacking with my sword, me managing to slice a large chunk out of the guardian's leg from the blow. "Time to shine!" Ina smirked as she took her weapon, the Gringham Whip, and slashed it against the guardian's face, which made it hiss in pain, Carl then attacking with a Kafrizz spell and Harley attacking the guardian with a hammer to its back right leg. The guardian then groaned and turned back into a statue.

"You have proven your worth, brave heroes. When Wyrmlight Shoots o'er the Wyrmward Chasm, the bridge to Greygnarl shall be reborn," the guardian said as the statue then disappeared and we saw a bow and arrow of golden hue sitting on a pedestal behind it. "I can handle it," I smiled, knowing a good bit about bows in my past as I holstered it onto my back along with my sword and Ina then cast Evac to get us out of the Bowhole.

"Okay, now what kind of chasm should we search for?" Marionette asked as I opened our map and I saw the chasm to the southwest of Wormwood Creek.

"I have a hunch this is the chasm we need to cross. 97 percent sure, and that's still an A plus, so I'll zoom us there and I'll make a bridge to Upover," I smiled as I held onto my allies and we all reappeared outside of Wormwood Creek. We then proceeded towards the canyon and I stood at the edge of the edge of the chasm looking to the other side. I took the bow and arrow and shot the arrow across the chasm, a path of light following the trail of the arrow's path until it hit the other side of the chasm, the bridge fully formed and actually gaining railings on the sides!

"What was that bright light? We saw it all the way from the Creek!" I heard the voice of Mayor Stan say from behind us as he and a bunch of other Wormwood folk gasped at what we had done.

"T-The bridge to Wyrmsmaw and Upover is rekindled! D-Did your group do this?" another citizen asked, him being a farmer.

"Yes, we did. And this is the bow we did it with. Found it in the Bowhole and had to battle a guardian to get it," I smiled as I presented the Wyrmlight Bow to the mayor, him dazzled by it.

"The last time I held this bow in my hand... oh, that was so long ago, back when I was a teenager. It was I who made this bridge in the first place in order to get Greygnarl to destroy the Gittish Empire back 25 years ago," he said with a frown.

"I trust you outsiders to find Greygnarl so he can help destroy the House of Gitt once again. Barbarus's resurrection can only mean more bad news to come, so please, do your best to stop calamity from occurring," the mayor said as Wallace smiled on from the middle of the crowd.

"We'll do just that, mister mayor. Don't worry, we'll teach those naughty Gittish Empire people not to mess with us!" Marionette smiled with a giggle as we looked to the bridge I had just made.

"Time to get Greygnarl's help. He may be old, but he defeated Barbarus and the House of Gitt all that time ago. He's still got to have some fight in him," I smiled as I led our group across the golden bridge of light and we had officially entered the Wyrmward part of the Wyrm continent.


	25. Chapter 25

**Chapter 25**

After we crossed the bridge, we proceeded down the path the long way around to Upover, finding that the path was very long and that the monsters were very tough in terms of defenses and some of them had fire capabilities. These included the Bagmas, the Hell Ninos, and the Bomboulders, which had a nasty explosive attack that they used when they felt like they couldn't win a fight.

Our group was very tired by the time we finally reached Upover, which had a huge flight of stairs we needed to climb in order to reach the town itself, a man looking shocked at us when we made it up to the place by nightfall. "Oh my! We finally have some visitors? You all look tuckered out... which means you came from Wormwood, right?" the man asked.

"Y-Yeah... we made a bridge of light... n-need sleep..." I groaned in weariness.

"Please, come inside and stay at my Inn for the night. All I ask is for 50 gold coins," the man smiled. I sighed and gave him a Gleeban Groat, which was double the price.

"Keep the change..." I sighed as we went into the inn and collapsed on the different beds, us snoozing away immediately afterwards. "Ah... sleep..." I sighed as I closed my eyes and fell asleep, seeing myself in another vision that I didn't expect.

This vision in particular was one that I didn't see coming. It was of the Gittingham Palace, where I heard a very dark and brooding voice start to talk from the bowels of the place. "Finally... the Yggdrasil bears fruit... time to enact my vengeance..." a voice said, me not recognizing it, but hearing a small bit of raspy breath in it. And it was then that I felt a massive earthquake under my feet as a flurry of lights broke from the center of the palace and around the four towers, them being the exact same colors I recognized as the lights that assaulted the Observatory! And at the same time? I saw 3 monsters rise from the dead as well as a fourth power emerging from the center of the palace. And atop all of that, I saw a large set of dragon bones reform its skin and muscles and turn into Barbarus! All caused by the same creature.

"Hah... now... I just wait... once those Fyggs are mine... I shall be the Almighty... and destroy all of this world... they will all feel the same pain I felt..." I heard the voice say again as I saw some feathers get sent from the center of the palace upwards, me seeing that they were jet black. And I immediately knew what happened when a Celestrian's feathers were jet black. Corruption, them turning into Fallen Angels, which were pure evil.

"C-Corvus..." I gasped at this new knowledge as I woke up with a groan to see Stella hitting my face nonstop in her tiny form.

"Rgh! Get up! Everyone's been up for an hour now but you! Wake up already!" Stella yelled at me, me groaning as I got up and the others looked at me with concern.

"Guys... I had another vision... and now I know for a fact that Corvus really is the cause of all this chaos... because he's been corrupted. And now he's a full blown Fallen Angel," I said with a sigh, them looking shocked at this,

"Fallen Angel?... That would explain why he was able to do all that stuff. Fallen Angels are said to be incredibly powerful in dark magics," Carl frowned.

"Sounds dangerous... we need Greygnarl's help now more than ever," Marionette said, getting the attention of the innkeeper.

"You seek Greygnarl's assistance? If so, you'll need to gain approval from the Mayor to get to the Magmaroo, Greygnarl being on the summit of it," the innkeeper said.

"Thanks for the information. Do you know where the mayor lives?" I asked him.

"He lives at the highest part of Upover, which is up the staircase behind the item shop and church," the innkeeper said.

"Thanks, we need to get going quickly. You may not believe us, but Barbarus is back from the dead and we need Greygnarl to help destroy him," Harley said as we proceeded out of the inn and up the stairs he mentioned until we got to the mayor's dwelling, which I knocked on the door to get his attention.

"Hello? Who's out there?" a male voice asked.

"Some travelers that got here from Wormwood Creek. We want to seek out Greygnarl's help," I said, the mayor's gaze looking at my comment with confusion.

"How were you able to get here from Wormwood Creek? Did someone fix the Wyrmlight Bridge finally?" the mayor asked.

"Yes, that was us," I smiled.

"Really? Well, why would you go through that trouble just to meet with Greygnarl?" the mayor asked.

"Because we need his help. The Gittish Empire has been resurrected along with the Dark Dragon, Barbarus. We need Greygnarl's help to get the jump on them before they can harm the world. And I have no doubt in my mind they may start their reign of terror with Upover because of Greygnarl's presence," Harley said with seriousness.

"Well, normally I'd think you'd be telling me porkies, but the fact that you're here from Upover and you went through all that trouble to get here means that there must be some truth to your story... if Barbarus is back from the dead, you definitely need Greygnarl's help. Talk to the guard at the gate by my house and give him this. He guards the Magmaroo, Greygnarl being its sole resident at the summit," the mayor said, him giving me a small cloth that looked to have a mark of a dragon on it. "That cloth is only given to those that are allowed to see Greygnarl. And all I ask when you meet him is to try to be nice to him. He's old and gets cranky if he's perturbed," the mayor said.

"Thanks, we'll remember that, mister mayor," Marionette smiled as she nodded and we proceeded out to the gate in question and presented the cloth to the guard.

"So, you wish to speak with Greygnarl? Well, since the mayor permits it, I'll let you through. Greygnarl is our great protector, so please don't do anything that may annoy him," the guard said.

"Understood," I said as we proceeded forward into the Magmaroo and saw that it had lava throughout the place as well as even more fire-based opponents. They included Magmalices, Mandrake Majors, Live Lava, and Mega Moais, our group having to act quickly to defeat them from afar because of their fiery properties. We walked up the path for awhile until we eventually reached the summit, us looking in the center arena and seeing a large hole in the side of the mountain.

"Who dares disturb me?" asked an old, gravelly voice as some pounding on the ground could be felt, two bright yellow eyes emerging out of the darkness of the cave to reveal a large, gray-colored dragon that had quite the look of intimidation on his face.

"Hello, friend! You must be Mister Greygnarl, right? We need your help," Marionette smiled as she walked forward to get closer to Greygnarl, him looking at her in confusion.

"I sniff something odd about you, young woman... I sense a body, but my snout detects a power inside of you I've not felt in some time... the stench of the House of Gitt," Greygnarl frowned.

"House of Gitt? Sorry, no, we're not affiliated with those assholes... please excuse my choice words... my name is Mariana, Guardian of Angel Falls. And these are my allies. They only smell like the Gittish Empire most likely because we had a brew that contained the essence of one of the Gitt's members," I said, speaking about Corvus of course.

"Hmm... you say you are a Celestrian from on high?... I feel I must ask, miss Mariana, but how would these mortals have the essence of the House of Gitt when they've been eliminated for 300 years?" Greygnarl said, my allies looking at me in shock when he said that.

"Three hundred years? But I thought you said it happened 25 years ago, Mariana," Carl gawked at me.

"Oh yeah... dumb me... I forgot that your time frame is much different than that of a Celestrian's... for me, it was 25 years. But for mortals, it's 12 times the age of a Celestrian," I said, my allies looking at me dumbfounded.

"You look a bit pale, guys. Do you need a drink of water?" Stella asked them with a smile.

"S-Sorry... it's just... whoa..." Ina gawked.

"Why have you come to request my audience anyways?" Greygnarl asked.

"Well, Mighty Greygnarl, you may not believe us, but the Gittish Empire has risen from the dead after that earthquake that happened a week ago. And with it, Barbarus was resurrected as well. And we ask for your assistance in helping us defeat them once more," I said to him.

"Bah! You say the House of Gitt has returned along with Barbarus? Do you have any semblance of proof?" he asked. But just as soon as he asked that, something happened that made Greygnarl gasp.

"I can hear a commotion in Upover! You lot! Get back there and protect them! I may look strong, but I'm unable to fly currently," Greygnarl frowned.

"Okay, everyone, let's go down there ASAP!" I exclaimed as everyone grabbed hold of me and we appeared back in Upover, seeing a trio of soldiers attacking the citizens and one of them actually grabbing a woman by the hand!

"NO! Get off me, disgusting freaks!" the woman exclaimed, me growling at this and what the guy said next.

"You'll be a suitable example of all who oppose the Gittish Empire, young lady," the soldier said, his bones being hidden underneath a ton of armor. Before he could do the deed, I shot a Frizzle spell at the guard, causing him to let go of the girl long enough for her to escape.

"You're dead! You should stay that way, you big bullies!" Ina growled at the trio of soldiers.

"And how, pray tell, will you have any say in how we do, little girl? You're just a weakling in a tutu! Get her, she'll be more suitable," the head guard frowned to his Stenchurion followers as Ina then started to do her power dance.

"Abanukem, Abanukem, Mekunaba, Mekunaba!" Ina growled as she did the dance, her body erupting into power and her immediately lashing her whip out at the Stenchurions, the force of the lash being powerful enough to crush the skull of the first one, causing him to die instantly.

"Eep! B-Boss..." the other Stenchurion gulped before I killed him with a swing of my Hypernova Sword, managing to cut through the armor and split the guy in half right down the middle.

"You're next," Harley growled as she looked at the final opponent with fury in her eyes and she took her hammer and smacked it so hard against the guy's armor that it completely shattered all over, him being nothing but an animated pile of bones with a sword.

"N-No! Help! I beg of you, don't kill me!" the soldier gasped.

"Then you shouldn't have tried to kill an innocent woman for no reason, monster. Look at yourself. Nothing but a skeleton and you still believe the Gittish Empire is worth following. You sicken me," I frowned as I ended him and sliced his skull in half, the bones of the soldier evaporating into dust afterwards. And then we heard a voice from behind us.

"Well, well. Looks like someone is doing well after that long fall," said the reserved voice of Hootingham Gore as he appeared down from the sky with his ear wings.

"I suggest you abandon your efforts here, Hootingham Snore. We're not letting you hurt anyone so long as we're around," I frowned as I held up my sword to him.

"Oh yes, yoo certainly are a force to be reckoned with, aren't yoo? But it matters not. We will take Upover and Greygnarl with it, and there's nothing yoo peons can doo to stop us!" he spouted before he disappeared once again. And then I heard Greygnarl's voice as well.

"I wish to help you defend Upover from future attack, travelers. But I require two things. First, Mariana must meet me alone at the top of the Magmaroo. And second, she must bring me some Drunk Dragon from the village brewers. I cannot risk you all getting injured," Greygnarl said, me nodding at his voice as well as my allies nodding as well.

"Okay, I think I'll zoom you guys over to Wormwood Creek for now. If anything happens, Stella, you go ahead and get them all in the Starflight Express and start looking for me. Okay?" I said to her.

"Just don't go gettin' your sorry hide burnt to a crisp is all I ask," Stella pouted at me with a flap of her wings. I then grabbed all my allies and warped them over to Wormwood Creek and then warped only myself back to Upover.

"Now time to get that Drunk Dragon to Greygnarl," I said to myself.


	26. Chapter 26

**Chapter 26**

I then proceeded to go about getting the Drunk Dragon from the brewers and he happily gave it to me if only because of the crisis at hand. "Good luck, miss," the guy who brewed it said to me.

"I'm full of luck," I smiled at him as I then zoomed to the top of the Magmaroo and proceeded forward to meet with Greygnarl, him looking at me with a smile.

"So, you have the Drunk Dragon with you and you come alone? You listen well... before I forget, I need to give you something," Greygnarl said as he gave me a strange seal that I hadn't seen before.

"One of those House of Gitt members from all that time ago dropped it and I decided to keep it. I have a feeling it'll be useful to you in the future. Now may I please have the Drunk Dragon? It will help me to regain some of my strength," Greygnarl said, me giving him the jar filled with the alcohol and him chugging it down with just his tongue.

"Oooh yeah... hic! That's the stuff. Okay, now for the next part. I need you to wear the Dragon Warrior Armor and mount my back so you can - hic - give me my full strength back," Greygnarl said before I heard a horrid roar in the distance.

"T-That can't be..." Greygnarl gawked as we saw it. A giant flume of purple fire being shot at us and it being fired by none other than Barbarus!

"Barbarus is here! Quickly, give me that armor!" I said, Greygnarl doing that as Barbarus then started to send shots into Upover! I immediately changed into the full set without trouble and mounted Greygnarl, him smiling as he felt it coming back to him.

"Yes... I can feel my power returning! LET'S GET HIM!" Greygnarl exclaimed as he zoomed into the air just as some Hocus Chimeras were about to attack us, Greygnarl dealing with them just by swinging his tail against their skins. He then set his sights on Barbarus, who Greygnarl approached in the air with a growl. "Long time no see, Barbarus," Greygnarl growled at the dark dragon.

"The same to you, Greygnarl, you old coot," Barbarus growled as Greygnarl then rushed Barbarus and bit him on the left wing, both of them flying everywhere and in multiple directions, making it difficult for me to stay on, but I managed to stay on for the insane rodeo ride they were giving me. Barbarus then fired a black fireball at Greygnarl and the old dragon countered with his own of pure white light, which managed to break through Barbarus's attack and hit the dark dragon with ease. But despite that, I felt little difference in his power.

"You've still got some fight left in you, Greygnarl... too little too late, though!" Barbarus exclaimed as he zoomed into the skies and I saw that he had been holding back! He still had tons of strength in his body and it soon erupted with dark magic, no doubt the work of Corvus! "I have gained power far beyond your understanding! NOW DIE!" Barbarus exclaimed as he sent a flurry of dark lasers at Greygnarl, which sliced into his thick hide with ease, causing him to be badly injured from it, but me somehow not being affected at all.

"Still standing, old man?... Hehe," Barbarus snickered to himself as he then looked at Upover. "Then let me show you my true power," Barbarus smiled as he then did something horrifying. He powered up the largest fireball I'd ever seen, it being twice the size of Upover! Greygnarl growled at this as Barbarus then sent it towards the town and I knew Greygnarl had to do something before it hit.

"Sorry, Mariana. It's been fun, but I have a town to defend as much as you, Guardian of Angel Falls," Greygnarl said.

"You don't need to say anything else," I said as I let go of Greygnarl and fell off of him intentionally, Greygnarl then rushing to Upover and me watching from afar as I fell down through the skies.

Greygnarl put himself in the way of Upover in front of the line of fire and I gasped and produced a bit of tears when I saw that Greygnarl's sacrifice was not in vain. He defended all of Upover from the blast that Barbarus sent, his body completely disintegrating in the process. And then, when Barbarus tried to fire another shot at Upover to finish the job, I saw that Greygnarl's death had produced a force field of light around Upover, the blast actually shooting back at Barbarus and doing some damage to him. "You did it, Greygnarl... you saved them all..." I sighed as I only then activated Safe Passage just in time. If I had waited a second longer, I would've been killed on impact with the ground.

I then groaned when Hootingham Gore arrived with a whole army of loyal undead troops. "Well, well, little Celestrian. It looks like you're all alone. Yoo think yoo can take on all of us at once?" the mad bird man smirked.

"I don't know, but I can certainly try," I frowned as I grabbed my sword and began to attack the various troops, me managing to kill two hundred of them before they finally subdued me the whole way. I wasn't going to go down without a fight.

"Yoo certainly put on quite a show, Mariana. No one has ever slew that many of our ranks trying to resist our power in the past on their lonesome. But I'm afraid your little games end now. Take her to the Goretress, minions," he frowned as the flyers that remained grabbed hold of me and proceeded to carry me to the Goretress, us avoiding Wormwood Creek and instead going around the opposite direction, as the Goretress was closer to the southwest than to the northeast.

"What holy hell am I going to be in for here?" I thought to myself with just air coming out and no audible words. I didn't want the guards to hear my ramblings. When we finally arrived at the Goretress, they flew in from the topside and all of us entered a barrier that surrounded the place from the top of the place, me knowing it was a magic barrier. Wouldn't be able to activate spells of any kind so long as it was up.

"Get a move on, worm! You've got to change into your new prison attire," the soldier said to me with his spear point poking my back, him leading me into a cramped changing room in the guard's tower and me seeing a bunch of other uniforms that looked to have blood red markings on them with stripes of black and white. People have been killed here before and I'm sure they've already killed a ton more. Regardless, I put one on that fit me that wasn't coated in blood and emerged for the guards to take me somewhere else, where I smelled the stench of the Goretress's leader.

"Lieutenant Goreham Hogg? We've brought a new prisoner for you to take," the soldier with the wings said, him being an Aggrosculpture monster.

"Really? A new prisoner, hmm? What is her backstory?" Goreham Hogg asked with a sniff of the air.

"She's apparently a Celestrian and she was seen riding on the back of Greygnarl before she got captured. She put up a hell of a fight too, managing to slay 209 of Hootingham Gore's men before finally being detained," the Aggrosculpture said.

"Gee, thanks for the compliment statue guy," I frowned at him, resulting in him smacking me in the face with his rocky hands, which hurt like holy hell. "OW!" I groaned from the pain.

"You say that she's a Celestrian? YOU IDIOTS! Do you see any wings on her? Because I sure blooming don't! Hootingham Gore may have sent me a good prisoner, but he shouldn't tell porkies by saying this bitch is a Celestrian bitch," Goreham Hogg fumed at the guards.

"Um... terribly sorry, Lieutenant... then what do we do with the... mortal?" the Aggrosculpture on my left asked, him trying to not upset the giant boar too much.

"Peh! Put her in with the other mortal maggots. If she ain't no Celestrian, she don't need to see our solitary confinement cells. Those are strictly for Celestrians and she ain't one at all," the Hogg frowned at the men.

"Yes sir, right away!... Come on, you clot! Let's get you into your new home," the guard frowned at me, him poking me with his spear enough for me to get the point.

"Okay, okay, I'm going! Sheesh, so pushy," I said, saying the last bit with just air and not a sound. I didn't want to get bitch slapped by a rock hand ever again. It stung like hell and I swore it actually gave me a black eye on my left eye. The guards then led me down into some confinement cells and shoved me into my cell, where I gagged when I saw the bones of a different prisoner who had been here long before I was.

I tried to think of a way, any way, that I could possibly escape. After all, they only took my weapons and my armor away, but they forgot to take my bag full of items and my accessories on top of that. So I still had that Gittish Seal on my person as well as a whole bunch of useful items on me. But I knew they wouldn't hold me off for long in this place until I found my armor and weapons again.

"Psst! Hey! Are you a newbie?" I heard a voice ask from the cell next to me, me being able to see through some small bars in a window next to me to see a very brawny man looking at me.

"Just got here today after riding Greygnarl and slaying over 200 soldiers before they could finally get me," I frowned at him.

"Strewth! That's an impressive rep sheet. I'm surprised they didn't 'aul ya off to solitary, treacle," the man smirked at me, which I simply sighed.

"Yeah, but now I'm stuck here. Got no weapons, no armor, just a bunch of pointless accessories that these idiots decided weren't enough to take, same with my bag full of items," I frowned at him.

"I'm even more surprised at that information... but enough about that. I suggest you get some shut-eye. I'm the one that shows newbies around this hellhole and then, once that's done, it's off to work with both of us," the man said.

"What's your name?" I asked him.

"Name's Sterling," he said, me finding that name somehow familiar, but me smiling at him all the same.

"Mariana... nice to meet you... night," I frowned as I huddled on the ground and pulled a rag over my body so I could get some warmth, me ending up going to sleep shortly afterwards.


	27. Chapter 27

**Chapter 27**

When I went to sleep, I expected to be able to see all of the Protectorate as usual, but I guess that since I was in a magic barrier, that wasn't the case. Instead I had a normal dream, something incredibly rare for a Celestrian to have on any occasion. And in this dream, there was something that made me a bit stunned.

I was standing in front of my allies and all of them were looking at me with smiles. But then, Marionette spoke. "Which of us do you like the most?" Marionette asked with a smile, me in my dream sweating profusely at the question that I never would've thought to ask. But my dream spoke for me.

"I like Marionette the most. You're just so sweet and innocent," I said in my dream, the others smiling and nodding at Marionette, her approaching me before I heard a loud booming voice echo in my dream.

"You are not allowed to be together with a soulless creature! I forbid it!" I heard a deep voice that I immediately recognized.

"A-Almighty Zenus? P-Please let me be with her! I... l-l-love... her!" my mouth spoke out, me gasping awake afterwards to someone yelling at me.

"HEY! Get up!" a soldier exclaimed at me from outside of my cell doors, me actually coated in sweat from the dream I had. "I thought I was gonna have to put ya down because you were convulsing all over the place... you must've been having quite the nightmares, kid," the soldier said to me... though I couldn't tell if it was generous concern because he was a Wight King that was speaking to me, a monster that was filled with magical prowess at the cost of a deteriorating body.

"I was... but why would you care anyways? I'm just a stupid prisoner and you're a heartless prison guard. We're complete opposites," I frowned as he opened my cell door and he frowned at that statement.

"You may be right about that, but I have to level with you... I don't fancy being brought back to life at all. I did some horrible things back in the day and I have yet to kill another person since I've been brought back. But if I spoke my mind, I'd be killed on the spot," the Wight King said to me.

"So why are you telling this to me?" I asked him.

"Because I know what you are... your wingless membranes showed through your prison garb for a few seconds during your nightmares," the monster spoke to me, me gasping when he said that.

"P-Please don't tell anyone!" I said to him with concern.

"I won't, haven't, and don't plan on it. All I ask in return is that you let me join your efforts to defeat the rest of the empire when you get your chance," the Wight King said to me. I had to contemplate his words for a second. If he was trying to pull a fast one on me, it'd definitely be a trap for sure. But then again, he knew about my wings so he knew I was a Celestrian, but I still hadn't been found out by the other soldiers. If this particular Wight King was truthful about wanting to take down the Empire, I knew he'd be a great ally with his magical abilities.

"It's a deal," I said to him as we just then got outside and into the light, my eyes getting a bit blinded at first from the sheer difference in brightness and darkness.

I felt my way to a door and went up some stairs after my eyes adjusted and eventually saw the same man that I saw was my next door cellmate, Sterling. "Well, Mariana, now that you're up and about, we can get started with the tour. There are 5 main areas I want to show you, each one more gruesome than the last," Sterling said as he showed me to the northeast and I saw a very troubling apparatus. It was a large human torture device that had humans pushing a large wooden turning machine with their body weight, which I looked disgusted at.

"We call this the Killer Crank. Not even the guards know if this is supposed to do anything from their constant pushing. And if you try to tap out, the guards will beat you up. And if you're a repeat offender, you'll be going to our second stop," Sterling frowned as he took me to a sight that made me gasp in horror. A noose hanging on a wooden structure.

"Dear goddess..." I gasped at it.

"Yep, I don't even need to explain what this is used for. If anyone refuses to do work, talks back to the soldiers, or tries anything funny, they get sent to the gallows and are killed in front of everyone... I've had many good mates get killed in these gallows, all of them getting killed because they couldn't handle the work," Sterling frowned.

"That's horrid..." I gagged, feeling very good for my friends that they weren't here. I just had to hope they were searching for me. Sterling then led me to the left some more and I gasped at something up some stairs. "Hmm..." I frowned, seeing that it looked like a barrier of sorts.

"Be careful with that thing, Mariana. It's a special force field of electrical magic that shocks all non-Gittish members if touched. They have them set up at the guard tower and the 5th stop on our tour," Sterling said.

"Sounds dangerous," I frowned as he looked at me with a frown.

"Well, first experience is best experience. Why don't you touch it to see what I mean?" Sterling asked with a smirk. I listened to him and touched the barrier in question, me shocked at how I wasn't getting shocked by it! I then went further into it and I gasped inaudibly at this, Sterling looking just as confused and worried as well after I got halfway through. "Quick, get back here before the guards see you," Sterling said, me listening to him and me noticing that my chest was glowing. It was where I hid the Gittish seal that Greygnarl gave me.

"What's that shining on your chest?" Sterling asked.

"Greygnarl gave me a seal that he stole from a Gittish soldier from 3 centuries ago... guess he's still protecting me as well as Upover, even in death," I said with a smile.

"Greygnarl's dead?... Sorry to hear that," Sterling frowned.

"But in his death, he managed to defend Upover from the Gittish Empire," I smiled.

"Okay, let's continue the tour," Sterling said as he then led me to a graveyard that had a ton of graves and the exit that was blocked by a duo of guards and another electrical barrier. "Well, I wish I could continue the tour, but we can't put off our work anymore. We need to go and do our jobs now," Sterling said, me wondering what my job would be.

A guard with an axe approached me, him being a Stenchurion. "Yo! Newbie! You done with your tour, right? Then you need to go to Goreham Hogg! He has a job for you. Hehehe," the monster said, me wondering what the job was. I was dragged by him and went through the barrier after it was temporarily taken down for me to get inside the guard tower and we found Goreham Hogg in the process, him looking at me with a provocative smile.

"Well, little lady, nice to see you," Goreham Hogg said to me.

"What's my job supposed to be?" I asked, wondering if he was going to do anything in terms of torture.

"Hehehe! Your job is simple, sexy girl," the giant boar smiled as he licked his lips, me gasping as I had a feeling something horrible was going to happen. "We don't have any female prisoners as tough as you, so I need you to have my children," the Hogg smiled, me gasping and looking at him in disgust and me being terrified that he may have a child with me.

Goreham Hogg then lowered his flail and I was pushed up to him by the guard behind me and I suddenly remembered. If he saw my wings, I'd never escape. I'd be put in solitary confinement with all the other Celestrians! I had to get out of this somehow. It was then that I noticed something behind Goreham Hogg a trio of chests, me immediately sensing a great power from the one on the right, me knowing what was in it. My sword. The Hypernova Sword.

Goreham Hogg then took his meaty hands on my body and ripped down my pants, me gasping as he then pulled his pants down and I knew I had to make a move quickly. As soon as he tried to mount me, I punched him directly in the face, then kicked him away with my legs and picked his flail up, smacking the Stenchurion behind me as well as hitting Goreham Hogg in the face, knocking him out cold but not killing him. I then rushed behind him and got the chest that had my sword in it, me grabbing it and finishing the job with the giant pig, his body evaporating into nothingness afterwards. I then opened the other two chests and seeing one of them had a cool whistle and the other had a very cool key as well as all of my armor in it!

Once I got all of my loot, I then proceeded to the top floor of the Guard Tower and lowered the shields while taking care of the guards in the process. I then heard a clamor outside that I smiled at. "The shields are down! TIME TO ATTACK! FREEDOM!" I heard a voice say outside, me joining the fight after I got in my armor, me assisting in attacking the opposition with more ability than the others and everyone managing to escape in the process, Sterling remaining in the place.

"You did that, didn't you? That was a pretty ballsy move," Sterling smiled at me.

"Well, I did it after the Hogg was about to rape me, and I didn't want him to see my wings," I said, making Sterling gasp.

"Wings? You're... one of them? A Celestrian?" Sterling asked.

"Yes, she is..." said the voice of the Wight King, Sterling standing guard, but me holding him back. "She's the best chance we have at stopping the Gittish Empire," he said.

"By the way, I never got your name, mister. What is it?" I asked the Wight King, Sterling only then lowering his guard.

"It is Bammo... but enough about that, you need to save the Celestrians in solitary confinement. I'll lead you to those cells," the Wight King said, him leading us to the basement area underneath Goreham Hogg's area and us seeing some Celestrians trapped in magic circles. "Just touch them and they will be released," Bammo said, me listening and entering the first one and freeing the first Celestrian, me gasping at who it was.

"Vultur? Don't worry, we'll get you back to the Observatory," I said as Sterling grabbed her and I then realized that he was able to see her too. I then did the others and saw there were 4 more, their names being Noctua, Vega, Pisces, and Lyra, all of them being female minus Pisces, who was a male.

"All of these Celestrians and all of them were captured... this is very troubling, Sterling frowned, me gasping when he said that.

"You can see them too? Then that must mean you're of a divine power, right?" I asked Sterling with my mouth agape.

"Yes, I am. By the way, when you got your stuff back, did you happen upon a golden whistle?" Sterling asked.

"Yeah, I did. Is it yours?" I asked as I got it out of my pocket for him as I helped the other Celestrians out of the dungeon and up into the light, all of them feeling extremely drained for a reason I could only guess.

"Yes, it is. It's our ticket out of here, in fact," Sterling smirked as I gave him the whistle and he blew into it, a loud whistle being heard in the distance as I then saw the Starflight Express appear from above us! And guess who was on it? All of my friends!

"Oi! It's Mariana, Fat Guts, and a bunch of Celestrians! Don't worry, blokes! We're comin' down!" Stella smirked as she lowered the train gently onto the ground just outside of the Goretress, Bammo looking a bit surprised at how we had a giant flying train with us. And my allies were also a bit shocked by him being on our side.

"What's this guy doing with you, Mariana? He kinda looks like trouble," Harley asked as she held her weapon in her hand.

"I can vouch for him and say that he's actually a good guy. He helped me out here. He knew I was a Celestrian but didn't rat me out to Goreham Hogg. And he assisted us in freeing these other Celestrians and the other prisoners of the Goretress," I said, me noticing a lack of Marionette in the crowd. "By the way, where's Marionette?" I asked as Serena stayed in the door of the Starflight Express with her eyes closed as she held onto her necklace.

"She's trying to find you on her boat. In fact, she said she would follow where we went to in the Starflight to help in getting you back from the ground," Ina smiled as I then looked out to the west and saw a boat appear out in the open water, Marionette docking it with an anchor and rowing over to us with a rowboat, which I knew would be the saving grace for the other prisoners.

"Hey, we need to go help our fellow mortal prisoners escape, so here's what we're going to do," I said as I relayed the plan. "Marionette and Bammo will take the prisoners to the boat and get them safely to Bloomingdale. In the meantime, the rest of us need to go to the Observatory to get these Celestrians back to recover their health. I think that those assholes were draining their magic to create that magical barrier while they were in solitary confinement," I said with concern.

"That's horrid... is that true, Celestrians?" Ina asked with concern as she looked at Vultur, who was the only one that was able to stand, just with someone needing to carry her on their shoulder for assistance.

"Right... on the dot... once I'm recovered... I need to get back to Gleeba... I need to defend it from further intrusion..." Vultur groaned as I helped her into the Starflight just as Marionette made it to the shore. Sterling then went over to the different refugees along with Bammo and they looked at Bammo with hostility until Sterling spoke up.

"This bloke is the only good egg within that whole fortress, blokes. His name is Bammo and he's going to assist in getting you to safety with that ship over there. Treat him kindly, got it?" Sterling asked the different prisoners, there being at least 8 of them.

"Really? Okay, if youse says so, guv," one of the prisoners said as Marionette appeared with a smile.

"Your name is guv? Nice to meet you, guv," Marionette smiled at Sterling, me snickering at her usual denseness as I approached her once I got the Celestrians into the Starflight.

"Marionette? You're going to be in charge of taking these guys to Bloomingdale with Bammo the Wight King. He's a good guy, but if he attacks you for any reason, promptly punch him back," I smiled at her.

"Okay, I'll do it, Mariana," Marionette smiled as Bammo cast a spell and I saw that at least four of the prisoners floated into the air along with Bammo, him assisting them to the ship while the others went with Marionette back in the rowboat.

"Okay, now let's go back to the Observatory. If Aquila was true to his word, we'll finally be able to deliver those Fyggs to Almighty Zenus," I smiled, hoping that Aquila was truthful in his words that he would get the Fyggs back to Apus Major. We all boarded the Starflight Express and Sterling took the helm of it, smiling at Stella all the same.

"I'm proud of you, Stella. You've handled her real nice during my absence," Sterling smiled at Stella.

"Aw, shucks, thanks Fat Guts," Stella smirked, me looking at her with a frown.

"Why is your nickname for him Fat Guts again? If anything, it should be Big Hunk, not Fat Guts," Harley smiled as she used her flirty eyes on Sterling.

"Sorry, ma'am, I'd outlive you by millennia. Apologies," Sterling smiled at Harley.

"Dammit... but me being able to see you must be impressive, right?" Harley smiled.

"Yeah, same with all your other friends, even that Marionette chick. But the only way I can be seen other than that is if I allow people to see me, like my fellow prisoners. The monsters could see me nonstop, but the mortal humans couldn't so I bent the rules a bit and let them see me," Sterling explained.

"I see. What was that place like?" Ina asked as Sterling sent the Starflight into the air and up to the Observatory.

"It was hell on Earth. People were worked to the bone and, if they couldn't work anymore, they were hung and then buried. We had at least 30 dead until today," Sterling frowned.

"Horrid... but Bammo didn't do anything?" Carl asked.

"I never saw him lay a hand on anyone nor did he kill anyone. He's the only good egg of all of them and he's willing to join our cause for the good of the world," Sterling responded.


	28. Chapter 28

**Chapter 28**

Once we returned to the Observatory, the Celestrians by Yggdrasil (AKA, Celestria) were shocked to see what we had brought back with us this time. "My stars... Noctua, Pisces, Vultur, Lyra and Vega! You're true heroes to have rescued them, Mariana and friends!" one of the Celestrians smiled as they immediately took the charge of getting them to safety. "Mariana, Apus Major wants to meet with you. It is a matter of utmost importance," he said to me afterwards.

"Understood," I said with a bow as my allies followed me to Apus Major's quarters and he looked at us with a troubled gaze.

"Mariana... I saw everything unfold up here after Aquila handed me back the Fyggs. The Gittish Empire has resurfaced, Barbarus has killed Greygnarl with unfathomable power, and now Lieutenant Goreham Hogg of the Triumgorate has been slain by you. Not only that, but you have found an ally from the Goretress that wishes to turn on the Empire he once served and you have brought back the guardians of Zere, Gleeba, Snowberia, and Dourbridge! Now is the time to go to the Realm of the Almighty to deliver the Fyggs aboard the Starflight Express. I'd like it if your mortal allies could come as well. I'm sure that Almighty Zenus would be grateful to meet mortals as brave as you all fighting for the good of the Protectorate and for Celestrians alike," Apus Major spoke to us in a long monologue.

"We would love to join you, Apus Major," Carl smiled as we then proceeded to the Starflight Express and Stella and Sterling smiled at the Fyggs.

"Well whaddaya know? That bald Celestrian wasn't telling porkies after all! I was worried for a bit what with all the trouble we went to just to get them things," Stella said with a bit of sass, as per usual.

"Well, Stella, Aquila is our most trustworthy Celestrian, so he'd never betray us," Apus Major said as Sterling adjusted the coordinates.

"Everyone in? Then I say we go off for the Realm of the Almighty! Fasten your seat belts, cause we're going to the heavens!" Sterling said as he blew the whistle and we proceeded with the Fyggs to the skies above, the train seeming to go faster with the Fyggs on board... or maybe it was because Sterling was controlling it. Either way, we made it in only a few minutes and we saw that it looked just like what I imagined it to be. Streets of gold, pathways of light, pagodas of imminent beauty, and the clouds underneath it all shining a pinkish-golden hue (if that color was possible, this place made it possible).

"My word... this place looks so beautiful!" I gawked at the sight of it as we went out of the Starflight and continued on our way to the north, noticing that there was a very big lack of a welcoming party. "Please don't tell me Zenus lives up here all alone... if so, he must be extremely lonely," I said to myself... but then I saw someone behind me that I didn't expect to see joining us up here.

"He doesn't live here... not anymore..." said a voice behind us that belonged to none other than the girl that we'd saved all that time ago, her being the combination of Mona and Morag.

"Mona and Morag? What do you mean by that?" Ina asked the duo in a single body.

"We mean that... well... you know that earthquake that happened that did all that stuff?" she asked, her voice sounding like a combination of their voices in one body. And when they said that, my face shriveled and I felt my heart sink. I immediately ran full force towards the palace ahead of us and my allies ran after me as I saw other spirits I'd helped in the past as well by the palace, those being Marion Bloome, Sternivus Swinedimple, Edwinn, and even Cattarhina!

"So the spirits of the deceased all walk the same place that the Almighty does, huh? I never would have guessed that," Harley smiled as I finally reached a sight that made me shocked. It was a sight that made me fall to my knees and collapse into tears. What did I see? The throne of the Almighty Zenus completely vacant, a giant hole in the ground and through the roof that I had no doubt was from Corvus's assault on the Heavens and the Protectorate over a week ago.

"Corvus... you've... he's... he's killed Almighty Zenus! CORVUS! ! ! I WILL STOP YOU NO MATTER WHAT IT TAKES!" I exclaimed at the top of my lungs as I also pounded my fists into the marble ground in front of me, my allies looking concerned at me as well as Serena looking shocked by what I said.

"Corvus... he did this?" Serena asked with tears in her watery eyes. I sighed and looked at Morag and Mona's shared body with seriousness.

"Morag. Mona... whatever you want to be called now... tell me. Do you know of what happened here?" I asked them, hoping they'd respond.

"We do, mostly because Morag could see everything that happened on that day the moment we got here... the lights from the Fallen Angel assaulted the Heavens and hit the Almighty Zenus with a force unrivaled anywhere else. It didn't kill him... but it separated all of his personalities and sent them all into sealed chambers all around the Protectorate. It was apparently a fail safe system he had set up in case something would've killed him. He'd just split his personality into 10 different parts. But the areas of them are a mystery... all that we know is the names of each of them and what they represented of Zenus," they spoke as they then started to list them off.

"Equinox is the sturdy, quick feet of Zenus. He is in the form of a horse.  
Nemean, the conscious mind and head of Zenus. He is in the form of a mute lion chimera  
Shogum, the desire to be Zenus's other personalities and his longing for a companion. He is in the form of a Slime Warrior.  
Elusid, the thought process and thinking prowess of Zenus. He is in a form similar to the Dreadmaster... would you like to demonstrate, Sternivus?" Morag asked, Sternivus then undergoing a transformation into a giant man beast with tiny devil wings on his back and a giant book in his hand along with his horrifying face. "Okay, I've committed it to memory," I said as they Morag and Mona continued.

"Trauminator, his repressed memories of a tragedy that happened with his daughter. He is in the form of a heavily weaponized robot.  
Atlas, the anguish of the loss of Zenus's daughter. He resembles an orange Cyclops with a giant club.  
Sir Sanguinus, the heavenly blood of Zenus. He is in the form of a red colored knight atop a blood red steed.  
Hammibal, Zenus's emotions. He is in a form similar to Goreham Hogg.  
Fowleye, the eyes of Zenus and his inability to sleep. He is in a form similar to Hootingham Gore.  
Excalipurr, the arm of destruction. He is in the form of a leopard swordsman... and that's all that we know," they explained.

"My goddess... I had no idea the Almighty could have so many negative emotions and ailments... we need to deliver the Fyggs now, Mariana... come," Apus Major said as he helped me over to an area that I remembered well. The room of offering, told of in the earliest records of Celestrian lore.

"When Fygg Bloom is offered to the light of rejuvenation, the prophecy shalt be fulfilled," I said as I offered each of the 7 Fyggs to the light, all of them vanishing and the scenery around us suddenly changing to that of Yggdrasil, the Starflight Express also joining us!

"Whoa! What happened?!" Harley gasped at the sudden shift. But then I heard a voice... a voice from the tree.

"Do not fear, heroes... now the prophecy has been fulfilled... I can finally lift my curse..." she spoke as the tree behind me suddenly became coated in bright light and changed into a sight that made me gobsmacked. It was the goddess... it was Celestria! And her presence in front of Apus Major made him bow before her.

"Great Goddess Celestria... please, tell us how to stop the Fallen Angel and restore Almighty Zenus..." Apus Major begged to her. Celestria smiled and shook her head at his actions.

"In order to defeat Corvus the Fallen Angel, you will need to go to the depths of Gittingham Palace and defeat the last of the Gittish Empire that guards his prison. Then you must rescue the rest of the Celestrians that have been captured by him and the House of Gitt before finally taking the fight to Corvus himself... his heart is sealed from 3 centuries of hatred towards humanity, so he will not be easy to face... but Mariana... Wingless Celestrian... You have ingested some of his feathers, along with your mortal allies. You have some of his power, so you can damage him despite him being your superior. Get him into a weakened state and then use the Wyrmlight Bow on him. That will purify his darkness and give him back his Celestrian status... and as for you, Serena, Corvus's lover... after he is saved, I will finally be at peace... you and him will join me in the Realm of the Almighty with all the other Celestrians. But... Mariana can not join us," Celestria said, me gasping at the last bit of her speech.

"I-I can't join you? I can't ascend to the Realm of the Almighty for eternity? I-I don't understand..." I asked in shock and worry.

"It is because of a certain issue that has happened to you. And it isn't the fact that you lost your wings. No... the issue is that you have spent too much time in the mortal realm without any invisibility to mortal eyes. It is something that I have no words to explain, but it made you partly mortal and partly Celestrian. As such, you cannot join the Realm of the Almighty until you have passed away naturally. But since you are part Celestrian, that means it will take 5 years for you to age one year in mortal years," Celestria explained, me sighing and hanging my head in anguish.

"Do not despair, Mariana. You can use that time to protect the mortals from any further problems as well as rescuing Almighty Zenus from his turmoil," Celestria said, me sighing again at her words.

"So long as I can join you up in your realm one day with my friends... I will be okay with it," I said with a smile.

"But of course, Mariana..." Celestria spoke as she gave me a vision and I saw a light blue tree appear in the Dead Isles, to the southeast of the Goretress. "I have formed another tree for the Starflight Express to be docked at safely. Head to the Gittish Empire and defeat the Gittish Empire and rescue Corvus from his plight. I am putting my trust in you, Mariana and friends..." Celestria spoke as she held her hands together and us nodding at her.

"Okay, guys. Let's go pick up our allies from Bloomingdale and head off to the Gittish Empire. Time to defeat the Gittish Empire and save Corvus from madness," I said with seriousness.

"Alright! Let's go! I call shotgun!" Stella smirked, Sterling smiling at her.

"Go ahead, Stella, you little scamp," Sterling smirked at her as we went to the Starflight Express with Serena and we got on our way to Bloomingdale as our first stop.


	29. Chapter 29

**Chapter 29**

Once we arrived back in the Protectorate, Stella docked the Starflight Express to the outside of Bloomingdale and Bammo and Marionette soon came out to join us, Bammo needing to use a transform spell to make it so that the citizens wouldn't hurt him. He now looked like a puppy as Marionette held him in her hands and they both joined us on the Starflight.

"Ugh, thank goodness you got here... The spell hiding my true appearance was about to wear off," Bammo frowned as his puppy appearance changed back into his Wight King appearance.

"Your transform spell wears off after awhile? That's not how I have it," Ina said with confusion.

"You can use the transform spell? And you are so young... How very interesting..." Bammo said with amazement as Sterling then got on the controls and looked at me in particular.

"Okay, Mariana. You ready to take the fight to Gittingham Palace?" Sterling asked.

"You bet, Sterling! Let's go!" I said, him hitting the controls and us going into the skies and appearing in the Dead Isles after a few minutes of flight. And when we got there, we saw that the tree was a bit to the south of the Goretress and the Gittingham Palace was to the northeast of our location. "This is gonna be tough, guys. That palace is sure to be filled to the brim with Gittish members and I have no doubt in my mind Hootingham Gore will be there too. Exercise caution once we enter," I said to my friends.

"You don't need to tell me that twice, Mariana," Stella frowned as we proceeded out of the Starflight and to the northeast until we came to the front gates of Gittingham Palace, me smiling when we saw Hootingham Gore standing guard at the front gates with two knights with long swords.

"Well, well, whoo do we have here? How did yoo escape the Goretress so easily, Celestrian?" Hootingham Gore asked me.

"Goreham Hogg was ridiculously weak compared to my strength. Took him out all on my own even without my weapon," I smiled at the owl as I let my sword out of its sheathe and Hootingham Gore looked at me with a glare.

"Hmph! If yoo think yoo are so great, then why not prove it?... And is that yoo I see, Bammo? Why are yoo joining these idiots?" Hootingham Gore asked our Wight King friend.

"The Empire you serve is nothing but a sack of murderers! I want nothing to do with your evil ways anymore! I'm ready to atone for my sins, starting with you!" Bammo exclaimed as he cast a spell of Kafrizzle and shot it directly at Hootingham Gore, it actually doing quite a bit of damage to the owl man as he looked to be groaning from the pain.

"Kill them!" he commanded his armored allies, me simply taking the fray and slicing them apart right down the middle with one swing of my Hypernova Sword, Hootingham Gore looking at me with a smug smile as he then started to laugh. "You won't win in the end... King Godwynn and Goresby Purrvis still await you! They are far stronger than me by far!" the owl madman said with a cackle before Marionette closed the distance and punched the bird guy directly in the face with her claws on her, skewering his eyes out and him disintegrating into dust soon after.

"Who are those other guys that he mentioned?" Marionette asked.

"Goresby Purrvis is a mercenary that joined the Gittish Empire as a lieutenant to find a worthy foe to test his battle with. And King Godwynn is the emperor of the Gittish Empire. He's the one that gave the orders to find all the Fyggs so he could use them to become a literal god," I heard a voice say from above us and I smiled when I recognized it.

"Well, looks like you've arrived just in time for the party, Master," I smiled at Aquila as he flew down to our position and he looked at me with a smile.

"You've come a long way, Mariana... I apologize that you got captured by Goreham Hogg. I only learned about it after your escape. I take it that the Fyggs made it safely to the Almighty?" Aquila asked, me noting that he had 7 yellow fruits. They didn't shine, so I could tell they were fake.

"Yes, they did... but not to Almighty Zenus... something's happened to him..." Carl said with a sigh.

"Wait... what do you mean?" Aquila asked.

"Those same lights caused by Corvus and the same earthquake also affected the Realm of the Almighty. He attacked Zenus and now he's been split into 10 different personalities and they are all in hidden dungeons across the Protectorate... but how are we going to save him if we don't even know where these ruins are?" I sighed.

"Wait... Master Corvus caused all of this to happen?! How? And where is he at?!" Aquila asked. I pointed into the palace itself, noting that the gate was locked, but me smiling when I took out the key that I had from Goreham Hogg's treasure chests.

"Corvus was brought here 300 years ago and is still rotting away in the deepest dungeons. I have no doubt in my mind that he's the one that caused all this chaos, since his isolation and growing hatred has sealed his heart in darkness, turning him into a Fallen Angel," I said, Corvus frowning at that as I saw him start to quiver.

"Are you being truthful, Mariana?... You know I don't like lies... If this is true... I'm powerless against him..." Aquila said as I saw he was producing tears. It was rare for him of all people to cry, but he only did it when he felt anguish.

"Master... you needn't worry. You may not be able to attack Corvus. But we can," I said to him, Aquila looking at me in confusion.

"But he's your superior... it's impossible to attack your superior if you're a Celestrian..." Aquila said.

"Under normal circumstances, yes. But we've all ingested some of Corvus's feathers from a special brew we got in Batsureg. We have some of his power, so we can actually weaken him enough to a point of vulnerability. After that, I need to hit him with a shot of the Wyrmlight Bow and he'll be freed from his torment," I said to Aquila.

"You... You've really thought of everything... I'm speechless, Mariana! You've come a long way from being Guardian of Angel Falls," Aquila gawked as he then noticed Bammo finally.

"So... what's his story?" Aquila asked.

"He's pretty much the only Gittish soldier in the Goretress that wants to repent for his sins. He never once killed a person since he's been brought back as a Wight King and he's joining our quest to stop the Gittish Empire's resurrection once and for all," Harley explained.

"I see... let us continue on then. I'll go with you. We'll need to fight our way through the palace to the highest tower before we can face Godwynn and the area before that is guarded by Purrvis. We'll need to fight our way through, but when we reach Purrvis, he will only accept one of us to do battle with," Aquila said.

"Then that'll be me. My sword can slice his to bits," I smiled as I showed off my Hypernova Sword to Aquila and he smiled.

"Hypernova Sword, huh? Purrvis has a Fizzle Foil for his sword. It won't last a single sword swing!" my master smirked.

"Less talk, more action! Attack!" Ina exclaimed as she and all of the rest of us rushed after her and we proceeded to slaughter our way through the palace.

* * *

 _Meanwhile, in the dungeons of Gittingham Palace, Corvus waited, his breath heavy with anguish and his arms and legs still shackled in resilient restraints. He was able to hear the voices of the group that was coming to finish him off. And he didn't like it one bit. He knew that Aquila was always going to try and stop him, but he never expected four mortals, a Wight King, and a mysterious female Celestrian to try and attack him too._

 _"Rgh... They'll come... in due time, they'll come... those four mortals won't... be able to touch me... and those Celestrians... are underlings to me... once they free me... I'll slaughter them... then I'll become the Almighty... I shall finally rid the world... of mortal souls... they shall know my pain... THEY SHALL KNOW MY PAIN!" Corvus exclaimed loudly as his words echoed through the halls and towers of the entire palace._

* * *

"THEY SHALL KNOW MY PAIN!" we heard a loud voice echo through the entire complex just outside the room that held Purrvis inside.

"Corvus... he knows we're here. We need to book it before he does anything nasty," I said with seriousness in my voice as I recognized it as sounding like a malice-filled Corvus. We then proceeded through the door and we saw Purrvis standing guard over the staircase that would lead to Godynn's tower.

"So... You are here to take the life of King Godwynn?... How purrfect... Which of you will face me in battle?" Purrvis asked as I dedicated his appearance to memory. He looked like a leopard wearing pants and gauntlets, standing on two legs, and he held the Fizzle Foil in his hands with a small growl and a purr afterwards.

"I shall do battle with you," I said as I held my sword out and Purrvis smiled at it.

"So... we finally have a swords master come into the fray.. carrying the most powerful sword in the world... this will be my greatest battle yet! Come at me, Wingless Celestrian!" Purrvis exclaimed as I then rushed him, immediately matching a sword blow with him and actually surprised that the sword didn't break through the Fizzle Foil on the first swing. But Purrvis certainly felt a vibration from the power of the sword.

"Oh YES! Finally, a swordsman that can be worthy to kill!" Purrvis gloated as I took his gloating to slice off his fencing arm, the cat shrieking in pain as he looked at me with a hiss and he knelt down on the ground as his arm started to bleed.

"Word of advice, Purrvis? Gloating distracts you. Pay attention when fighting someone far stronger than you," I frowned at him as I kicked the sword out of his reach and placed the blade of the sword at the back of his neck. "Any last words?" I frowned at him.

"Burn in hell..." Purrvis said.

"Nice choice," I frowned as I plunged the sword into his skin and severed his head, Purrvis evaporating into smoke soon after.

"That was badass," Harley smiled at me.

"I second that! Flappin' badass!" Stella smirked with a little twirl of her own.

"Now for the final member. King Godwynn... proceed with caution. Allow me to go first," Aquila said.

"As you wish, Master," I smiled at him as he went first and we followed shortly behind him, wondering what he would do in front of King Godwynn.


	30. Chapter 30

**Chapter 30**

Our group stayed outside of the throne room while Aquila went in alone, holding the fake Fyggs in his hands and me listening in from afar. "So, Aquila. You've managed to bring me the Fyggs, have you?" I heard King Godwynn's voice from inside of the room.

"Yes, I have, your excellency," Aquila said as he placed them on the ground and we waited to see what would happen next.

"But I can already sense them. They're just regular pears! You really thought you'd be able to fool me that easily?" I heard King Godwynn ask.

"Not at all, King Godwynn. But it doesn't matter, because I have some allies that will end you forever," Aquila said as he whistled and we all piled into the room, King Godwynn looking at me with something in his eyes... but I couldn't tell if it was anger or fear.

"You managed to get here on foot? Did Aquila help you destroy my best two lieutenants?!" Godwynn asked.

"Nope. They were dealt with by our group, not Aquila. He didn't lift a finger," I said as we proceeded inside first, the guy looking shocked by my presence.

"And who are you supposed to be? And I see you have a bunch of mortals on your side as well as a fairy with pink wings," King Godwynn smiled at us.

"Well, Godwynn, we're the ones that killed Goreham Hogg, Hootingham Gore, and Goresby Purrvis, got the Fyggs to their rightful place in the Almighty Realm, and plan on rescuing Corvus from his plight. You know, the Celestrian that caused all of this chaos to happen? And part of that logic means you need to be dead. Your reign of terror ends today," I said to Godwynn as I held my sword in hand and Aquila grabbed his sword too.

"Well, so it has come to this has it? Very well, I'll start with you, Aquila!" Godwynn exclaimed as he cast a Kacrack spell and it hit Aquila, managing to do considerable damage to him.

"Augh... damn, that hurt..." Aquila groaned as I rushed up to Godwynn and slashed my sword into his arm, that causing him to hiss in pain as he tried to swipe at me with his wand, but I swiftly dodged while Ina slashed at him with her whip, the crack of it managing to do considerable damage to his other arm that held his scepter, which he dropped afterwards.

"Hah... your group is strong... but you won't last long... against my true power!" Godwynn exclaimed as he blew us backwards with a gust of wind and I gasped when his body started to transform into something hideous. His skin completely fell off of him, as did his robes. He then grew a long skeletal tail and four arms that held a sword in each hand. And his head turned into that of a demon!

"So, this is your true form is it? Time to finally become a Class 1 Paladin! This will surely make me a Class 1!" Harley smiled as she held onto her giant hammer and she rushed forward and smashed it against the first of the swords, it managing to shatter it into a thousand pieces! She then smashed it against another sword, making it break clean in half! And while Godwynn was dazed, she then connected a blow to Godwynn's skeletal face, that managing to get him to fall to the ground as I saw his skull crack at that.

"Nice one, Harley!" I smiled at her as I approached her and she smiled as she hummed a bit and I felt a power erupt from her.

"Class 1... FINALLY!" Harley smiled with a powerful roar. But before we could celebrate, Aquila noticed something that I didn't.

"LOOK OUT!" he exclaimed as he flew forward and knocked Harley out of the way of an attack from a not-dead Godwynn! The sword slashed Aquila right across the torso, him gagging as he slashed the skull of Godwynn in half, that being the finishing blow as he finally disintegrated... but then I saw Aquila was starting to glow and that he was clutching his side in pain.

"MASTER!" I exclaimed in shock as I approached him and held him in my grasp, tears filling my eyeballs as I looked him in his eyes, him groaning as he tried to look at me.

"Mari...ana... save my... Master... I'll see you... in the... Almighty... Realm..." Aquila coughed as his body started to shine incredibly bright and I whimpered.

"Master... no..." I sobbed.

"Don't despair... Mariana... You need... to stop... Corvus... Save the mortals... All of you..." Aquila said with a groan as his body then disappeared and his spirit went up into the sky.

"Aquila... no... NNNNOOOOOO! ! !" I exclaimed as I felt my power erupt and I growled and hissed at this. "THAT IS THE LAST FUCKING STRAW! YOU HEAR ME, CORVUS?! I'M GOING TO MAKE YOU PAY FOR AQUILA'S DEATH! I AM COMING FOR YOU!" I exclaimed in fury as I rushed down into the stairs behind the throne and my friends followed me with concern and anger in their eyes as well.

"We need to rescue the Celestrians too, Mariana, remember that," Stella said to me, trying to calm me down and failing.

"Fine! I'll free them, you guys help them to the surface! Stella, you and me are going to attack Corvus together!" I exclaimed at her.

"Y-Yes ma'am!" she said with concern as we arrived in some cells for Celestrians and I released them one by one, seeing that there were 9 of them in total until we saw some stairs to the lowest level. I felt an ominous aura down there and I knew what it was.

I walked down the stairs while Stella flew behind me, us going down at least 60 stairs until we reached Corvus's area, him being chained to a rock and having a very demonic look to him. His wings also had half of their feathers missing, them having bones showing because of how mad he went. "So... you have finally come... unchain me..." Corvus smiled with a sinister chuckle.

"Not on your fucking life, Corvus! I'm attacking you as you are now! You need to pay for killing your own student! Aquila didn't deserve death!" I exclaimed at him as I held my sword in my hand and Corvus glared at me.

"Aquila... he was a pitiful student... you still won't be able to touch me... whoever you are," Corvus sighed as he flapped his wings and sent a flume of dark magic at me, which I pushed through with my sword as Stella got behind me to prevent from getting attacked and hurt. "W-What is this? You aren't dying... You are able to withstand my... dark magic..." Corvus gawked in obvious surprise.

"You can't hurt me with your magic, Corvus. I'm a Celestrian. I have some of your power, and I'm going to use it to finish you off," I frowned at him as I took my sword and slashed his left arm right off of his body, Corvus exclaiming bloody murder at that as Stella held her ears in pain.

"AGH! You bitch!" Corvus exclaimed as he tried to attack me with his wing, which I sliced off as well, him growling and hissing in pain as I felt him starting to get weaker.

"I thought you were tough enough to bring all of the Gittish Empire back to life? Doesn't look like it has any effect on me," I snarled at him as I then sliced off his left leg and he yelled again and he started to produce tears.

"I'd say you're softened up enough," I smiled as I brought out my Wyrmlight Bow and he gasped at that. "Time to purify your ass, Corvus," I growled as I shot the arrow right into his body, Corvus gasping in pain as I saw a ton of dark energy exit his body and pour out onto the ground, forming into a bunch of shadow monsters, me slicing them apart with my sword until all of them were defeated and Corvus finally was at peace.

"Hah... hah... I... I remember... S-Serena..." Corvus gasped as the ghostly girl soon appeared and lowered her hood, Corvus gasping at her presence.

"Corvus... you're finally freed... Freed from your madness... I'm so happy..." Serena sobbed as she approached Corvus and I saw that he then turned into a spirit and he regrew his wings and halo, him looking at me with a face of sorrow.

"I thank you... for freeing me from madness... And... I'm sorry for all the chaos I caused... while I was consumed with malice... forgive me..." Corvus frowned.

"Say that to Aquila when you get to the afterlife. He's the one that died because of you resurrecting Godwynn. So apologize to him, not me," I frowned at him with a sigh as I bit my lip to prevent the tears from coming out. Aquila didn't deserve to fucking die prematurely.

"Okay... farewell..." Corvus said as he and Serena started to glow brightly and they disappeared into the sky as I was soon joined by all of my allies as well as the kidnapped Celestrians.

"You did it, Mariana! You saved everyone!... But wait, aren't we forgetting something?" Marionette asked.

"Yes, we are. Barbarus is still around. We need to defeat him before the Protectorate can truly be safe. With Corvus gone, he's sure to have been weakened to a point that he can be killed. Let's go find him," I said to my allies.

"You going to be okay, Mariana?" Carl asked me with a smile.

"I will... I just didn't want Aquila to die like that... he deserved to move on with the other Celestrians to the Almighty's side... but now he only exists as a spirit, not an actual Celestrian..." I sighed with sadness.

"I should've been more wary, Mariana. I blame myself for this... please forgive me," Harley said with a sigh of remorse.

"It wasn't your fault, Harley. I thought Godwynn was killed off by you too... only Aquila saw he was still kicking. He's by far the most attentive Celestrian I've ever met... I'm proud to have served underneath him..." I said with a smile as I produced a few more tears.

"Now let's go off to fight off Barbarus. He's got to be around here somewhere... but how do we fight a dragon? We need to find some way to fight him on his own terms. Fight him in the sky. Dragons do not play fair, especially evil dragons like Barbarus. We need to find out some way to fight him in the sky or lure him down to the ground. Any ideas?" Bammo asked, him still being around for some odd reason.

"Well, I don't know... the only thing I can think of is that we need to find some kind of weakness. But where do we look to find out a weakness Barbarus may have?" Marionette said, her actually thinking really good for a change.

"A weakness for Barbarus?... Bammo, do you know if there is a library in this palace at all?" Stella asked.

"There is one, but we'd need to backtrack to a room near the entrance. And to tell the truth, these deceased bones are getting a bit tired for me," he said.

"Don't worry, I can cast Evac... and considering how much you weigh, I may be able to give you a small bit of a lift," Stella smiled.

"I don't weigh much, young fairy. I weigh 69 pounds at most without my staff," Bammo said.

"I can handle anything less than 100 pounds," Stella smiled.


End file.
